


The Ghost He Hosts

by Nightmarestar_Of_ThunderClan



Category: Danny Phantom, Pocket Monsters: Sword & Shield | Pokemon Sword & Shield Versions
Genre: Ain't nothing getting him down, Aquarius is a good boi, F/F, Hop is a sunny boi, M/M, Multi, Not just ghosts, Still Debating, Trainshipping AU, Victor Phantom?, Victor fights a lot of cryptids, all the cursing, extreme language, mild horror themes, there will be cussing, you'll see - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-12
Updated: 2021-02-12
Packaged: 2021-03-07 16:33:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 25,009
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26970691
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nightmarestar_Of_ThunderClan/pseuds/Nightmarestar_Of_ThunderClan
Summary: Walking the line of life and death, Victor tries to figure out what the ever-loving FUCK he was thinking trying to open his parents ghost portal.
Relationships: Beet | Bede/Mary | Marnie/Yuuri | Gloria, Hop/Masaru | Victor
Comments: 24
Kudos: 23





	1. Prolouge

“Hop, we shouldn’t be down here” I hissed as my best (and only) friend looked over the failed portal, eyes seeming to sparkle from admiration. He loved paranormal and tech things, and my parents latest failed invention was all that wrapped up in a neat little bow. “I shouldn’t have told you about this thing at all!”

“Oh, come on, Vic, the thing doesn’t even work! Where’s your sense of adventure?” He asked, smiling that smug smile that made me both annoyed and enticed (I didn’t get it either). “Or is little Vickey still afraid of the ghosties?”

“No, I just have a healthy sense of self-preservation” I snorted, walking over to the entrance of the portal to prove my point. “I’m less scared of the portal than I am about interacting with crowds”

“So, decently frightened by the undead?”

“Not at all” I snapped back, flipping him the bird. “Because ghosts don’t exist, dummy, but death by electrocution does, and its storming”

“And yet crowds are more frightening?”

I reddened at the statement, pulling my hood up. Social anxiety was not fun. General anxiety stacked on top of it did _not_ help.

“Shut up” I hissed, grimacing as I refused to meet his eyes, looking into the depths of the failed portal, green glow thrumming underneath the seams of the metal.

“This is the techno-paranormal dream down here” Hop ignored me, swooning over the inventions. He may like the creepy concepts of gothic culture and the paranormal, but the guy was a ray of sunshine. I’d known him since he was six, and I still barely understood his conflicting interests.

“Just don’t hurt yourself” I warned, not breaking eye contact with the portal. I found myself stepping inside as Hop continued to fawn over every glowing piece of tech in the lab. I ran my fingers over the pulsing green lines, surprised to feel cold air as the green wisped around my fingers like smoke.

It was enchanting, and I found myself following the pulsing lines into the back of the hole, where a button was placed right above the portal core. It was green, and completely unlabeled.

 _Strange placement_ I thought, mindlessly pressing the button out of pure intrigue. It glowed brighter under the pressure, before returning to the usual glow when I lifted my hand. _Useless too, why is it all the way back here?_

“Victor! Get the fuck out of there!” Hop suddenly screeched, breaking into my trance. I looked up at him confused, as the green glow in the portal increased in intensity. He looked terrified, why-

Green exploded all around me, followed by ungodly pain indescribable by mere words. It was as if every molecule of my being was being ripped apart and put back together _wrong._ Darkness overtook me not too long after, unconsciousness thankfully cutting my agony off.

……….

_Fuck fuck fuck fuck_

I rushed to the entrance of the stabilized portal, Victor’s silhouette having gone silent after what felt like hours of tortured screaming. He was standing just beyond the swirling front of the portal, but sticking my hand in only led somewhere cold, and didn’t put me any closer to my friend.

“Victor! Speak to me, please!” I cried, unable to touch him though the entrance of the very much functioning portal. I was worried I was just taking to a burn mark, the leftover ashes of an incinerated Victor, and almost started wailing at the very thought, before the figure swayed, and stumbled out of the green mess. I caught him before he hit the floor, frantically pulling him as far away from the portal as possible in the lab.

 _What the fuck were the Hearth’s thinking with soundproof walls down here!?_ I found myself thinking, as I collapsed at the other end of the lab, Victor clutched in my arms. _Somebody should’ve heard that regardless, so why is nobody coming down!?_

I took deep breaths as I tried to calm my frantic thoughts, being reminded that nobody was actually here but me and Victor. Gloria was out with Marnie and Bede, and the Hearth parents were ghost hunting in some abandoned hospital about half an hour away on the other side of town.

_Nobody was here to catch the screams. Victor would’ve been alone if I wasn’t down here with him._

I looked up after I managed to get my breathing back under control, and almost threw up.

Green goo splatted with red was streaked down the tile floor of the lab, leading from the now-active portal over to where I had Victor held tightly in my arms. The trail started as pure green, and got progressively more red and bloody the closer it came to me and Vic. The constancy and amount seemed to lessen and stop right before us.

I looked down at Victor finally, and nearly screamed again. His skin had been gone for a split second, his organs and veins on full display, before reappearing, pale as all hell. He was heaving, but still alive, a bit of blood already drying on his lips, the red speckled with a slight green tinge.

 _His jacket must’ve been burned off in the explosion_ I thought absently as I frantically looked him over, checking for burns and cuts, but finding nothing.

I was almost ready to cry in relief when there was a flash of light, and I looked up to find a pair of glowing red eyes staring at me through half-closed lids. Soft white hair fell over his forehead, and a clawed hand touched the side of my face, an inverted version of Victors jacket covering the creature that had taken VIctor’s place in my arms.

I went still, eyes blown wide in terror as the strangely human-looking creature gave me the once over. I didn’t know wether to run or try to kill whatever being could swap places with my best friend so easily, one with eyes that filled me with fear.

“Hop?” It finally hissed, making my heart stop. Victor’s voice came from its mouth. It had Victor’s face, Victors hair swirl, inverted classic Victor attire, hoodie included. “You aren’t hurt, are you?”

_Oh Lordy fuck, no way. No! He can’t be-! He was fine just a moment ago!_

Silently, I grabbed his wrist, jamming my thumb into the vein as Vic squeaked in surprise. No pulse.

“Hop, you’re hurting me” Victor spoke in a raspy voice, probably sore from all the screaming. I flinched and dropped his hand, which flopped down on his chest. I felt a chill go up my spine as Vic pushed himself up into sitting position in my lap, rubbing his forehead with a wince. His eyes, while still red and glowing, were still soft, pain and confusion clearly reflected within. “Remind me to never push strange, unlabeled buttons again”

 _This is still Victor_ I thought vaguely, ignoring Vic’s surprised squeak as I grabbed his face and pulled him closer for inspection. He had the same face, sharp features rounded slightly with clinging baby fat. His eyes were no longer brown, but still very expressive. His hair was a snow white, but he still had those wild cowlicks in the back that never seemed to fall no mater how many times you smoothed them down, along with that iconic swirl up front. _He may be cold, and look really strange, but he’s still Victor_

“How do you feel?” I asked finally, letting go of his face so he could talk. He shrugged a bit, tugging on his adorably oversized hoodie.

“Cold, I guess. A little woozy” He admitted, looking into my eyes with confusion. “That hurt, a lot. But I’m fine, somehow”

“I wouldn’t be too sure” I replied, pointing at the portal. He turned a bit to look at the trail of blood, and immediately whipped back, covering his mouth and heaving a bit. “You did stop bleeding, but I’m not sure how or when”

“I’m gonna be sick” He squeaked, and there was another flash of light as he squeezed his eyes shut. I flinched, and after the light subsided, Victor was back to normal.

Then he coughed up green tinted blood all over my front and passed back out.


	2. Back to School Blues

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Notes are passed, and Bede is a dick. This Fic is gonna have some dark and morbid jokes, so please read at your own risk

“I crave death” I moaned as I leaned on Hop, regretting pretty much all my life choices. The three of us were stood before Galar High, who’s halls I hadn’t walked for a week during my mandatory week-long lockdown after the accident with the ghost portal. Hop winced at the proclamation. “Anyone got bleach?”

“Please don’t say that” Hop pleaded, as Gloria rolled her eyes in annoyance, not being in on our secret.

“Quit being overdramatic, or I’ll call mom back here to drag you home for another week” she warned, earning her the bird from yours truly. “Real mature, Vic”

“Maybe I’m just sick of your shit” I replied, standing upright to alleviate Hop in case he felt like fleeing the sibling standoff. “Who was the one who flipped her shit when I got up for a glass of water yesterday?”

“Please don’t start fighting in the school parking lot” Hop pleaded, stepping between us to keep us separated. “Lee isn’t going to cover for you guys a second time”

“Fucking hell, I wasn’t going to attack him” Gloria replied, rolling her eyes. “Plus, the jerk squad started it on the first day, picking on Vic”

“And did I ask for you to deck the head jock?” I asked, raising an eyebrow with a deadpan expression. She snorted and whipped around.

“Later, fuckwits. I’ll see ya’ after school, I gotta tack down Bede before he fucks with someone ballsy enough to hit him” She dismissed herself, giving us a backward wave.

Whatever, she’d be back to annoying me with overprotectiveness by lunch.

“Mother hen” I muttered, as she never joined us on the walk to school until today. Hop was usually my only company, which was just fine by me. Other people made me nervous.

“She’s just worried about ya, mate” Hop assured me, giving me a little shoulder bump. “Its like when I got a cold and Lee checked in on me every five minutes until the school administration caught wind”

“Yeah, but I’m not sick. Just fucked up for probably the rest of my life” I replied, shrugging. Hop shuddered, knowing exactly what I was referring to. “Here's hoping I don’t break my face via intangibility today, yeah?”

“You joking about your situation isn’t exactly helping” Hop muttered, haunching his shoulders in discomfort. “Aren’t you worried about someone seeing something they shouldn’t?”

“Oh, who’d believe them? I’m something that is, by all conceivable means, an impossibility” I replied, repositioning myself so I was walking backwards along his path to face him. “Worst case scenario, I move to Transylvania and live out the life of a hermit vampire, or end my fucked up existence. Either sounds fun”

“Jesus, are you having _another_ manic episode?”

“Maybe” I said with a grin. Hop facepalmed.

“Fuck me sideways, can you please _try_ to keep your shit together?” He asked after a moment, removing his face from his palm. “I am not covering for you if you decide to provoke a jock”

“Good, don’t” I replied, doing a little heel turn as I walked in the front door of the school, Hop following close behind. “And hey, if one of em’ kills me, an abomination is removed from society and an asshole goes to jail. Win-win, right?”

“You need therapy” Hop deadpanned, always able to see right through me. “At least you have a legitimate excuse for the hoodie now”

“You know it” I replied, pulling up my hood. “Social anxiety suppressed, now onto killing myself and making it look like an accident!”

“ _Vic_!”

……………..

Class was boring, no surprise there, but it was better than being cooped up in my room listening to my parents tinker with weaponry in the basement. Just picturing the horrific ways they described destroying ghosts sent another chill up my spine.

 _Easy. I can’t lose control in the middle of class_ I thought with a deep breath, clearing my head. Nobody was paying attention to the hooded kid in the back with the self proclaimed Paranormal Investigator of Galar High. I doubted anyone in school knew I existed anyway, aside from Hop and my sisters friends.

Which, to be honest, was a _very_ good thing. Especially now.

I looked up at the clock as a slip of paper was covertly slipped under my arm, the sheet of notes and tic-tac-toe Hop and I had been passing back and forth to each other the entire class.

We were masters of mid-lecture communication.

I idly flicked open the paper, reading over his newest message with a grimace.

“ _Any plans to avoid Gloria during lunch?”_

I set the paper down and thought it over, completely ignoring the last part of the lecture at this point. Gloria knew all the little quiet spots I had scouted out over the first month of school, and if I wanted to eat in peace, it would have to be somewhere new, and unexpected.

“ _If all else fails, we can squirrel ourselves away in the corner of the cafeteria”_ I scribbled out idly, flicking the paper back to Hop when the teacher turned away. He inconspicuously opened it up, grimaced, and started writing immediately.

The paper was back in my hands within thirty seconds.

 _“Last time you were in there for lunch, you had a panic attack. I’d rather not see how your symptoms react to pure terror”_ I rolled my eyes, looked up at the front, and scribbled down my next message.

_“Where else could we go? She knows my spots”_

Flick. Crinkle.

I didn’t have to look this time to catch the note on its return journey, pretending to pay attention to the lesson as I received the paper again. Some asshole in the third row was preparing a spitwad as I opened the note.

 _“You underestimate my power. I nicked the key to the Guidance Councilors office while you were out last week. Vice Principal Sonia is easily distracted”_ He boasted.

Hopefully the teacher never confiscated this note.

 _“You’re bonkers, you know? I’ll meet you there, get my lunch”_ I replied with a hint of finality. I covertly slipped the paper back to Hop.

He read the note, nodded subtly, and promptly shoved it in his mouth todestroy the evidence. I raised my eyebrow in concern as he spat it out and tossed it in the trash, shooting me a thumbs up as the teacher descended on the previously mentioned jackass in the third row with the fury of the scorned.

 _What an absolute loon_ I thought, but I was smiling anyway.

Now to wait until lunch.

………..

The key to avoiding Gloria is to simply not cross her line of sight. They key to avoid a Gloria who is looking for you is to take the path of most resistance, as much as I hated it. That meant the most crowded parts of the hallways and narrowest corridors you could find.

She knew I hated it, and thats exactly what I was counting on. A vast amount of discomfort was worth some privacy, especially when Gloria was in one of her overprotective moods.

I would’ve gotten away with it clean if I hadn’t been intercepted by Bede on the final stretch.

“Yo, freak, where you off to at this hour?” The little demon called, making me instinctively freeze up.He always knew how to push my buttons, and I found myself just standing still as he stalked up, that shit-eating grin on display, wearing his usual purple ensemble.

 _Does he know?_ _He couldn’t, right?_

I didn’t know why I was threatened by him, he was the only boy in Galar High shorter than me, even if it was only a few centimeters. Yet, I couldn’t help the fear choking me as he stopped, flicking my forehead with an evil look in his eyes.

“Heard you went and blew yourself to hell. Guess Gloria overexaggerated again” He shrugged, before he began circling me with menace. “Damn shame. She’d be better off without you, _freak_ ”

My heart stopped for a moment, and I instinctively clutched the fabric over it, trying to sink further into my jacket. Bede went in for the kill, sensing my weakness like a damn shark.

“Ooh, did I strike a nerve? That word never seemed to affect you before” He hissed, smirking. “What did you _actually_ do to yourself in your parents horror basement? Shoot up with some dangerous chemical?”

I choked on my words as Bede leaned closer, smirking with that dangerous gleam in his eyes. I felt an all too familiar pulse of energy in my chest, and backed up, Bede matching me step for step.

 _Oh Jesus, not now!_ I thought as the foreign energy in my chest pulsed again, and I found myself stumbling back against the lockers, heaving. _Bede’s RIGHT THERE, don’t do this to me now!”_

“What the fuck, Bede?” Hop’s voice suddenly cut through my panic. I looked up at my savior, who was carrying two lunch trays with a furious expression. “Are you seriously harassing Vic on his first day back? You _know_ he gut really fucked up last weekend!”

“What can I say? The little freak is too easy” Bede chuckled, taking a little step back. “It’s amazing he hasn’t offed himself already”

Hop promptly slammed a tray into his face.

“Get the fuck out of here!” Hop screeched, nailing Bede in the head with other tray before he got out of range. I chuckled a bit though the numbing sensation, before sucking a breath in through my teeth, the energy inside me pulsing again.

“I love you dude, you know that?” I asked as Hop pulled me to my feet, holding one of my arms over his shoulder. “You are the best”

“Sing my praises when we’re safely locked in the Councilors office” Hop chided, pulling out a set of keys and fumbling with the lock. “I don’t understand what your sister sees in that jackass”

“Me neither” I admitted, sighing a bit as Hop locked the door behind us, hanging the keys on a hook affixed to the wall. “You sure nobody will come down this way?”

“Sure as I can be in this hellhole” Hop replied, and I released the pent up energy without another word. The change was always painless, but it was fucking freezing afterward. I sighed and flopped down on the dusty sofa in the corner, white bangs falling in my face. “You look great, Vic”

“I look like a midget Jack Frost, don’t patronize me” I muttered, putting a hand to my forehead as realization struck. “Fuck, our lunch was just used as ammunition to keep this form a secret, wasn’t it?”

“Eh, I keep snacks in my bag, we aren’t gonna starve” Hop replied, pulling his bag off and flopping down next to me. “It was worth it to teach that prick a lesson”

“I’d agree with you if I wasn’t starving” I muttered as Hop dug into the recesses of his bag. “Breakfast attacked again this morning”

“Well, I have a bag of your favorite chips, if that makes anything better” he said, pulling out a mostly undamaged back of cheddar and sour cream, along with a sub in a plastic bag, and some protein bars. “The sub’s about a day old, but I should still be good if you wanna split it”

“No thanks, I may wanna kill myself, but I ain’t gonna suffer doing it” I replied, snatching the bag of chips. “Why do you even _have_ a sub in there?”

“It’s one from yesterday, I put it in my bag and forgot to eat it” He replied, opening the baggie and taking a bite. “Ish not bad!”

“Jesus, learn manners” I muttered, lightly punching him on the arm. He swallowed his food and chuckled, smiling wide. “You are the epitome of a bottomless pit, and I am genuinely impressed with how much you can keep down”

“You’re just a lightweight, mate” Hop teased, ruffling my hair. I grumbled in annoyance, but let it pass “Your appetite is probably why you’re still so tiny”

“I’m not that small!”


	3. Cryptid Hunting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nothing much happens here. A week has passed, and our boys have decided spend their weekend monster hunting in the woods. A conversation is had, and promises are made.

The rest of that week went on like that. Classes were dull, Bede would harass me whenever Hop wasn’t around, and then I was dragged home by Gloria at the end of the day. Sprinkle in several incidents of me face planting via intangibility and plain disappearing in the middle of class, and you have my whole week.

I grumbled as I yanked off my hoodie, tossing the glowing piece of fabric onto my dresser. Everything even related to my ghost form glowed, even my clothes, which I’m sure my parents had an explanation for, but I wasn’t going to ask them.

I locked the door securely, and flopped down on my bed, wincing when my white bangs fell over my eyes, slightly reflecting the red glow of my iris’. I opted to just close my eyes and put an arm over them, instead of face my reality at the moment.

_At least I have plans with Hop to distract me from this_ I thought idly, relishing in the dark and quiet. _His scattered cryptid hunts have always been fun, even if we’ve never found anything_

We hadn’t had one since the accident, but today we were starting up the old activity again, since I was less prone to tripping over nothing in panic now. I moved my arm up a bit as I pulled out my phone, checking the text Hop sent me to remember what we were looking for.

_Skin-walker. Of course, it can’t be the normal things like Mothman or aliens, you had to go tribal_ I thought idly, amused by Hop’s love of old Native American monsters. If it was wendigos or a crashed alien spaceship, Hop would take the cannibal. _Dork._

I was smiling in spite of myself. Hop was my tether to normalcy, and I shuddered to think about what I would’ve done if he hadn’t been there during the accident. 

_Either been killed or killed myself, probably_ I assumed dryly, sitting back up in bed to get a better look at myself. My favorite polo, which I had worn under my jacket that day, was a vibrant green instead of red, and glowed separately from my body and hoodie. My light blue jeans were now a navy color, and my brown boots had changed to black, so not everything was inverted. Raising an eyebrow, I turned on my phones flashlight, and directed it at my arm, checking to see if the glow I had was less noticeable in extreme light.

“Vic, what the hell are you doing mate?” A voice suddenly asked from my door, making me flinch, shoot up out of bed, hit the ceiling _hard,_ and drop my phone in rapid succession. I was wincing, hands on my head, shooting Hop a death glare as he closed my door behind him, laughing like mad. “O-oh my God! That was fucking _hilarious!_ ”

“Don’t startle me like that, you ass!” I shrieked as he strode into the room, covering his mouth to muffle further chuckling. I felt myself redden at the cute expression, and I turned away, grimacing. “You suck”

“I’m not the guy with fangs here, Vic” He chuckled again, picking up my phone and tossing it up for me to catch. I was shoving it in my jeans pocket as he continued “You ready to go? I’m feeling good about this lead”

“Just give me a minute” I grumbled, mildly pleased to find my powers obeyed for once in letting me land. I grabbed his shoulders and spun him around, pushing him to the door. “I need to get my camping stuff”

“Aww, why can’t I stay in here and wait?” Hop whined as I shoved him out the door, giving him a flat grin.

“I’m sorry, but jump scaring dicks don’t get to sit on my bed” I replied, before slamming the door in his face.

…………..

It took two hours by public transport to get to the forest on the outskirts of Galar, and it was just as dark and intimidating as I remembered. I found myself shivering as Hop took his camera out.

“Don’t you dare post anything we do out here” I hissed, hearing the device turn on. Hop gave me a reassuring smile. “Skin-walker or no”

“I never do, this stuff is just for me” He replied, looking at me through the lens. “You’re like a dim lightbulb at night, you’re the only thing in focus”

“I’d turn it off if I could” I deadpanned, pulling down my hood as nobody was supposed to be out here anyway. “What do your parents think we’re doing out here? I know they’re never okay with any of this paranormal shit you’re into”

“We’re looking for an endangered species of owl if they ask” Hop replied simply, putting the strap of his camera around his neck and turning it off to save power. “I’ll try recording when you’re not lit up like a Christmas tree”

“I’d have to be sleeping” I muttered, turning to face the trees again. “So what’s the plan? Wander aimlessly through the forest until we find a skinned carcass?”

“Actually, theres an old Navajo burial mound that the Skin-walker has been known to frequent around here recently. We’re going there first, and setting up camp” Hop replied, smirking as I shivered. “If we’re lucky, the ghosts will leave one of their own kind alone”

“Why did you have to say that?” I squeaked, shivering at the very thought of a creature like myself coming after us. There was a reason I avoided mirrors. “We know they’re real now, reminding me of that isn’t helping the old phobia!”

Hop chuckled and put an arm over my shoulders in reassurance.

“Oh, calm down. Your parents haven’t found anything remotely ghostly in these woods after a decade of searching, you’re gonna be fine” he assured, giving me a little sideways hug. “Besides, Skin-walkers are _way_ less dangerous. Don’t worry so much”

I winced as he removed his hand, but followed him into the trees, not wanting to be left alone.

The walk itself wasn’t eventful, but it was _long_ , and eerily quiet. It was an unspoken rule to not talk while hiking at night, lest we attract something undesirable when we were unprepared, but usually there were bugs chittering, fireflies, or even the occasional small mammal skittering through the undergrowth. However, tonight, there was nothing, which was unnerving as all hell. I may have been stuck in my ghost form the whole time, but I wasn’t remotely intimidating, so it couldn’t have been me.

Could it?

Eventually, we came upon a clearing with rotting wooden pikes sticking out of the ground, moonlight spilling over thick, lush vegetation that was different from the surrounding grounds.

We had arrived at the burial mound.

“Well, _that_ was a nerve-wracking walk” Hop sighed, looking pretty unnerved as he dropped his equipment. “You’re scaring the wildlife, Vic. Next time, blow out the torch, yeah?”

“Why do you immediately assume it was my fault? Look at me, do I look remotely dangerous to you?” I asked, slightly offended, as I spread my arms to give him a better view. “I’m a short and scrawny fourteen year-old no matter what form I’m in. I couldn’t scare a fly if I _tried_ ”

“Yeah, but your looks don’t change the instincts of wildlife” Hop replied, pulling out his tent supplies. “You may _look_ like a harmless little albino, but that doesn’t stop animals from thinking you’re a threat”

“… I really need to pay more attention to Ka-dads ghost speeches” I muttered in defeat, dropping my bag on the ground to search for my tent stuff as Hop setting up. “Also, my eyes are red. Albino eyes are more pink, and it spreads to the sclera. Not to mention my tan in this form-”

“Alright, bio-nazi. I see why you have an “A” in biology now” Hop cut me off, chuckling as he pitched up his tent. “Although, I guess its a given with scientists for parents”

“You have no idea” I muttered, remembering the extra lessons I’d get when I asked for help with homework back in middle school. My step-father was smart and kind to me and my sister, treating us as his own, but he was _super_ over-enthusiastic about science, and of course, ghosts. I sat through a lot of lectures I ignored about the latter, and now I found myself regretting it.

I was done with pitching my tent as Hop set up a fire, so we were good to go for the night, wether it be a stake-out or just a camping trip like all the other times.

“So, how are we going to attract this Skin-walker?” I asked, flopping down in front of the fire pit, resting my head in my hand. I was pleased to feel my beating heart, having changed back into my human self after being startled by a hit on the head by one of the rods for my tent. Even the sounds of the forest were slowly coming back. “Last time I checked, Skin-walkers aren’t much for interactions outside their own kind, that don’t include the murder of the other party, of course”

“Simple” Hop replied, pulling out a lighter and flicking it on, holding it to the fire kindling. “We wait. Now that you aren’t lit up like a glowstick, the Skin-walker will be more likely to come back here to hunt without an opposing threat”

Hop grinned as the fire lit, and moved to sit next to me, as I pulled my knees to my chest, staring at the flames licking at the wood. We sat in silence for a few moments, just enjoying each others company over the crackling fire.

“What am I now, exactly?” I asked finally, still staring into the flames. Hop gave me a curious look out of the corner of my eye. “I mean, it’s clear I’m not human, but I’m not a ghost either. I don’t know if I’m both or something else entirely, and it scares me sometimes”

“Honestly, I’ve never heard of anything like you” Hop admitted after a moment of deliberation. I shot him a weak glare, mostly overcome by melancholy. “Hey, it’s not a bad thing! You’re just unique, and thats a good thing in a lot of cases”

“I don’t feel good about it” I admitted, returning my gaze to the fire. “I don’t feel like myself anymore, either. It like theres something always humming under my skin that isn’t supposed to be there, but is starting to feel natural anyway, and it terrifies me”

“…I can’t imagine how you feel about your situation, but you’re still the same old Victor I met all those years ago” Hop reassured, making me look up at him as he stood, a huge grin on his face as he put his hands on his hips. “For me, nothings changed. You’re still you, and thats good enough for me. No matter what happens, or what you turn out to be, I’ll be by your side”

“… Can you really be sure of that?” I asked, averting my eyes with a grimace. “I’m a freak of nature, and if someone finds out about this, you’ll be connected to me. Are you sure thats what you want?”

“Abso-fucking-lutely” He replied without hesitation, making me look back up as he gave me a hand, pulling me to my feet “You’re the best friend I’ve ever had, I could never turn my back on you”

Then he hugged me, and it was quite possibly the best thing that happened since the accident. I returned his embrace with a smile, hiding my red face in his shoulder.


	4. Skinwalker Skirmish

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Victor fights a Skin-walker, Hop is so overtly enthusiastic near-death experiences don't really phase him, and we learn a few things about Victor's unique powers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I need to work a little more on action sequences in the first person, but I hope this is good enough for now :/

We ended up splitting up to search for clues of the Skin-walker around the clearing. Hop wanted to go together, but I just needed a little time to myself to cool down and process that, yes, I had a person I could rely on, no matter what.

It was a nice feeling.

I giggled like a schoolgirl, the light feeling actually letting me float in my normal body, but I dropped back down when I realized it. My face reddened in spite of me being alone, and I decided to look at the ground

I stared inspecting graves to keep myself occupied, not wanting to come back with nothing, perfect night vision picking up a lot more than I would with a flashlight. Most of them were untouched, supporting vegetation that suggested they had been buried for quite a long time. The pikes were barely standing upright, having rotted away over the centuries.

Some of them showed signs of recently being dug up, which was _unnerving_ , to put it lightly. _I wonder if somebody would grave rob a Native American, though. Weren’t they notoriously worldly people without many possessions?_

I pulled out my phone to take a few pictures, knowing Hop would probably want to see the churned graves in the middle of the mound, hidden by the surrounding foliage. Some of them had snapped off bones jutting out of the dirt, jagged shards of white disturbing the dark earth.

It wasn’t until I noticed the rusty colored bones reflecting moonlight that I realized some of these graves were _fresh._

They weren’t people graves though, thank _Christ_ , but there were hooves and squirrel head among the remains. Half the creatures were buried, but there were still intestines strewn about, and even a Coyote foot sticking out in the middle of it.

_Gross_ I thought, shuddering as I moved away from the gore-fest, shaking like a leaf. Something about seeing a bunch of animals brutally murdered without being eaten or completely used wigged me out. _Who the fuck comes here just to kill random animals!?_

A serial killer, probably. Which meant we probably needed to leave-

A scream cut through the darkness, cutting off my revelation. My head whipped towards the noise, and I found myself running to find the source, the scene I had just unearthed prompting me to move faster.

I stopped dead at the top of the burial mound, heart stopping while I took in the scene below me.

Hop was slumped against a tree, blood dripping from his head, effectively knocked out. More horrifying, however, was the creature hunched over him.

It was near eight or nine feet tall, six as it hunched over, covered in animal and human skin. A deer skull was perched on its head, and blood was dripping from every available opening I could see from the back.

It took a step closer to Hop.

I was body-slamming the creature away faster than I could register, knocking it a good ten feet across our side of the clearing. The ghost part of me was raring to go, humming just beneath the skin, but I held it down for the moment.

The front was far worse than the back.

The creature under the fur and skin had rotted away long ago, leaving bones, organs, and blackened, slimy shreds of its natural skin curled between long, clawed fingers. The face underneath the skull was black as night, with gleaming bloodstained teeth twisted into a grin. Two white orbs glowed from the decayed eye sockets, completing the look.

“Fuck me, the one time you had to be right!” I hissed at Hop’s unmoving form. The Skin-walker lunged, claws digging into my shoulders as it pinned me to the ground, screaming some unknown language without moving its mouth. Its jaws unhinged, closing in on my face. “Oh _fuck_ no, I am _not_ getting eaten tonight!”

The ghost part of me roared to the surface, and I kicked the creature up in the air as I changed, chasing after it into the sky. Time seemed to slow a bit as I flipped over to deliver a kick to its sternum, sending it crashing back down into the forest. I landed gracefully in front of Hop, anger simmering to the surface. The creature pushed itself out of the pit it had created on impact, hissing with a worm-like tongue.

“Come at me, bitch. I’ve got some shit I need to work out on your face” I hissed, cracking my knuckles. The Skin-walker hissed again, and lunged, loosing a pelt or two in the process. A new sensation welled up in me, and I tapped into it, knowing it had to be something useful. “Bring it on!”

The creature needed no second bidding. I dodged a myriad of teeth and claws, leading the creature away from where Hop was passed out. I found myself smiling in spite of the situation, phasing through several more attacks.

_Thats right, my friend isn’t on the menu tonight, either_ I thought, dodging another claw with more grace than I used to have. Something rose up within me as the next attack came, and I found myselfducking underneath the arm to jam my clawed hand into the intestines.

I flinched as blood spurted from its stomach at my mere touch, the sound of something burning making me withdraw my hand and step back as the creature screamed in agony.I looked down at my hand as it was distracted, finding it was covered in a red glow that flickered like fire, and a ton of blood.

“Oh, gross!” I squawked, shaking the blood off in a panic. The creature took notice f my moment of weakness, and I found myself on my back again, clawed hand wrapped around my throat. I hissed as it started to squeeze, the sensation still hurting despite my lack of need to breathe. I grabbed onto its wrist, planning on biting down-

“Vic!” Hop suddenly cried from across the clearing, catching both of our attentions. He was supporting himself on a tree, completely fine despite the blood on his face. He flinched in shock at the sight of the creature pinning me, clearly not thinking he’d see the object of our hunt for real. The creature seemed to debate with itself, before looking down at me with a sadistic grin, slamming my head into the dirt before it let me go.

“Hop, _NO_!” I screamed, struggling to stand up to stop the creature from going after him. It moved faster than I could grab onto it, and in the blink of an eye, it was standing over Hop, claws raised to give a killing blow.

Something snapped in me when I saw the look of pure _terror_ in Hop’s eyes.

The red glow returned to my hand, and running purely on instinctual adrenaline, I pulled all the jagged pikes and bones out of the ground with nothing but my own power, glowing red double-ended spears joining the natural ones. I pulled my hand back, and thrust it downward, propelling the multitude of spears into the Skin-walker.

The screaming that caused was horrific, and I found myself collapsing with my hands over my ears to block it out. I knew it wasn’t Hop, he hadn’t been touched, but the sound was still overwhelming. My own claws tucked in to not dig into my head, but it barely blocked out the noise.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the screaming stopped. I stayed curled up for a little while longer, trying to process what I had just done, and keep myself from having a full blown panic attack.

I only moved when Hop touched me.

“Vic, that was _awesome_!” Hop cheered as I came out of my stupor, sitting up in the grass. I stared at him in confusion. “You’re not just a normal ghost, you’re a goddamn _Psychic!_ How cool is that?!”

“You almost _died_ , and that’s what you’re focusing on?” I asked him incredulously, doubting my sanity. He smiled brightly, as if it didn’t bother him. “You’re _insane_ ”

“Nope, just excited! You saved my life!” Hop replied, pulling me up in his arms and spinning me around in excitement, despite my protesting squeaks. “You’re so _awesome_ Vic!”

“Put me down!” I cried, blushing like mad. Hop chuckled at my mortification, but obliged, smiling at me like I was the most precious thing in the world. “I don’t know what I did, okay? I thought you were gonna die, and I just _did_ , whatever it was”

I looked over at the corpse of the Skin-walker, which had gone still, just a pile of rotten organs and bones pinned under God knew how many spikes.

“I don’t care! Instinct or no, thats something that you’re capable of doing again!” Hop replied, eyes shining with admiration. I felt myself redden again.

“Can we please just get out of here?” I asked, pulling my hood back up to hide my flustered face. Warmth thankfully returned to my bod at that point, and I relished in my beating heart, knowing I’d survived. “I don’t want to camp at a burial mound after killing a monster, thats that screams bad things”

“Sure thing, Vic! I think my parents will buy that we had a bear encounter and we wanted to come back early” He assured me, slapping my back. “I had a lot of things confirmed for me today, so I consider this outing a complete success!”

“You almost _died_ ” I grumbled as we headed back to our campsite, completely in disbelief. He grinned at me.

”Yeah, but we found out you’re a psychic kind of ghost, and managed to stop a Skin-walker before it could start killing people again. Thats a roaring success!” Hop replied, turning to face me with a bright smile and his arms spread wide. “I regret _nothing_ ”

I gave him a deadpan expression, and he quickly corrected himself.

“Of course, we won’t be doing that again any time soon! I’m happy about a discovery, not insane enough to come unprepared again” He assured me, putting a hand on my shoulder. “I won’t be leaving you behind anytime soon, okay?”

“You better not! You would’ve died without me” I grinned, satisfied he actually was serious. Hop smiled back and withdrew his hand, putting both in his pockets.

“Yeah. You’re my hero, Vic. Just don’t let it go to your head” He replied, eyes lighting up a bit in excitement. “Oh, and you’re a psychic! We totally have to test that out when we get back!”

“Well, I’m glad you’re excited, but we should clean up our camp before anything else, yeah?” I asked, gesturing to our collapsed tents. Hop developed an over-exaggerated pout.

“Aww, cleaning up isn’t nearly as fun” He wined, and I giggled at his attempt to cheer me up. He grinned, and we got to work, chatting as the moon peaked over the clearing.

_What would I do without him_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Obviously, I am not completely copying from Danny Phantom here. Victor is a different person, so that means different ghost powers. That includes psychic abilities (And something else, if you caught it), and a lot of other fun stuff that won't be the standard ecto beams and other things. I have a list of all his powers somewhere, but I'm not posting it until later, as it would take the fun out of the discoveries Victor and Hop make within the story.   
> Also, yes, that Skin-walker is dead as shit.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Moving Rocks with your mind, and Minecraft cuddles

“Hop, this is by far the dumbest thing you’ve ever asked me to do”

I smiled at my doubtful best friend, stepping away from the rock I’d set up across the room, and back to his side. He gave me a flat look, brown eyes shimmering with mild annoyance. I wasn’t dissuaded.

“Come on, Vic, this is the most common psychic test” I replied, quickly checking the door to make sure I locked it as Vic huffed in annoyance. Satisfied I hadn’t forgot the crucial first step, I returned the attention to the stone on the table. “It’s easy, just move the rock without touching it”

Vic gave me a deadpan look, walked over to the stone, and kicked the table underneath it, maintaining eye contact the whole time as the rock tumbled onto the ground.

“Hardy har-har, now can you please take this seriously?” I scolded, returning the rock to the table as Vic stepped aside to sit down on my bed.

“You are way too confident that I can repeat what I did in the heat of the moment” He replied, a rather bored expression crossing his soft features. “Who knows, maybe the Skin-walker accidentally killed itself”

“Vic, your lack of faith in yourself is concerning” I stated, moving to sit next to him. “I know you’re capable, but you don’t even want to try”

“Because this is all so dumb! You’re literally asking me to move a rock with my mind, all because of something that could’ve been a fluke” He rebutted, resting his head in his hand with a grimace. “Nothing I have works like I want it to, if I was a psychic, I would know by now because it would have fucked me over at some point”

“But you don’t know that. For all we know, you have _tons_ of latent abilities that haven’t fully developed” I argued, flicking him lightly in the forehead.“This could be something completely brand new, but you won’t know until you try it out”

Vic gave me a flat look, but I could see I’d gotten through to him somewhat, so I could live with the moodiness.

“…Fine, but you aren’t allowed to laugh if something really dumb happens” Vic agreed, focusing his attention on the rock with a contemplative expression. I watched with bated breath, eager to see if he could pull it off like I knew he could.

Nothing happened for a few minutes, and I was okay with that, my excitement refusing to dwindle. Finally, a red aura encompassed the rock, just like the spikes the night before, and the stone hesitantly rose up into the air.

“You did it!” I cheered, wrapping an arm around Vic’s thin shoulders, making him flinch. The stone shot up a bit, but leveled out before it could puncture my ceiling. “I told you! You _are_ a psychic”

“Congratulations on being right” Victor replied, eyes still trained on the rock. He raised his hand, and with a deft movement, the stone shot towards us, stopping mere centimeters from my face. I watched as Vic made another movement with his hand, and the rock flew into his palm, losing its aura. “Huh, hand motions really do help”

“That was amazing!” I praised, watching as Vic sent the stone back up into the air again with ease. “You got it down so easily, I’m impressed”

“It doesn’t take much to impress you, though” Vic pointed out, turning his attention to me. The stone returned to his hand. “I think I can work with this, provided I don’t start levitating shit in my sleep like that girl in the movie”

“You worry too much, Vic” I chuckled, giving him another sideways hug.

“And you don’t worry enough” he grumbled, but for the first time in a while, he didn’t squirm or get embarrassed. _Progress!_

………..

I found myself on the couch with Vic playing Minecraft not an hour later, hot chocolate and fresh baked cookies steaming on the table, sharing a blanket. Vic was insistent on saving the training for another time, needing to get his mind off last night’s encounter before taking his focus to the next level, so I agreed.

Now we were huddled up on the couch with warm snacks and Minecraft.

_Is there anything better than this?_ I found myself thinking as me and Vic worked on the castle we’d been constructing over the last few weeks, the west wing almost complete. We were both silent, but the company was warm, and I relished in it.

I’ll admit it here, I’ve had a crush on Victor for as long as I knew what crushes were, maybe even a bit longer. Nobody was quite like him for me, even his twin sister.

Hell, _especially_ her. Girl was a wildcard, and most definitely not my type.

He was always so quiet in public, but when we were alone, he was the sweetest thing. He always got super flustered, but he was smart, and very friendly, despite his crippling shyness. He’d help anyone who needed it, and even though he developed a bit of an attitude, depression, and colorful vocabulary after the accident, he was still the same guy underneath.

Last night was proof of that.

_You may be physically different now_ , _but I’ll never give up on you_ I thought steadfastly, leaning against him. He didn’t say anything, which pleased me. _I won’t leave you alone_

I wrapped an arm around him without a word, pulling him closer, and he just accepted the touch, leaning into the hug. _So cute~_

“Whats up, lovebirds!” Lee suddenly chimed as he slammed open the front door, prompting Victor to jolt away from my touch as if he had been shocked. “Ooh, was I interrupting something?~”

“Fuck you, Leon” Vic snarled, getting up off the couch with his cup and taking my empty mug with him as he left without explanation.

I gave my brother an annoyed look as he chuckled, stealing Victors seat as soon as he was out of the room.

“Why do you do these things, Lee?” I grumbled, hiding my reddened face in my hands.

“Because you need to make a move, Hoppy!” He chided, grabbing hold of me in a side hug. “You need to seize your moment! Vic isn’t gonna wait forever!”

“You’re jumping the gun again, Victor’s not interested in relationships, and you know it” I argued, trying to wrestle my way out of his grip. “Curse you and your death grip!”

“Don’t change the topic, Hop. Vic is totally into you” Lee replied, gesturing to the blanket on the couch. “You think he would be keen on sharing a blanket if he wasn’t?”

“You really need to stop peeping in on situations that do not involve you” I chided, finally sliding out of his hold. “Victor isn’t in the best situation to start a relationship, even with me”

“Sure he is! His sister just started going out with Marnie _and_ Bede the week before last, theres nothing one twin can do that the other can’t” Lee replied, grinning like a fool.

“She _WHAT?_ ” Vic suddenly yelped, having re-entered the room at some point. The shocked look on his face could put me to shame. Lee smiled again, attention finally on a different topic.

“Yup. That sister of yours finally hooked up with those two, it’s the talk of the school” Lee announced, garnering a more horrified expression from the brunette. “It’s a miracle you haven’t noticed, they’ve been all lovey-dovey since before you came back” 

“That _bitch_ ” He snarled, throwing the mugs on the ground and storming out of the house without another word.

Everything went silent for a minute, before I sighed and fixed Lee with an annoyed glare.

“What was that all about?” He asked innocently, and I pinched the bridge of my nose.

“Victor _hates_ Bede, for good reason, and you just told him his sister, who he’s been at arms with for the last week, has been mackin’ him without his knowledge” I explained in a disappointed tone, as the lights went on upstairs for my brother. “You basically set off the Hearth twins nuke”

“Oh _Fuck_ ”

“Oh fuck indeed” I agreed, moving to clean up the mess of glass and chocolate before mom got home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the short chapter, but here's to next weeks being longer! As you can see, Hop's a smitten sunshine boi, Lee's a little shit when it comes to his little bro's love life, and Victor is about to kill his sister (Probably not, lol)  
> I plan to update every Friday, but I have ADHD, so I won't expect it to last long.  
> Also, Victor hasn't changed from being a good boi underneath all his sass, he just talks like a prick to cope with the disaster that is his existence nowadays


	6. Always Here for You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vic and Hop cuddle after Vic confronts his sister (And met Bede instead). Discussions are had.

_Entry Twelve: Victor seems to have much better control over his telekinesis than any other power thats developed so far. No limits for what he can lift have been tested, but hopefully we will know soon. He says hand movements help with fine control, but my personal theory us that they are more of a habitual tick than a requirement. Like how he pulls up his hood and tries to sink into his hoodie’s when he’s nervous-_

_Actually, is that a necessary addition?_ Probably not. I erased that last part. This wasn’t a psychological evaluation, after all, it was a research journal. Though Vic probably needed one of those too, if his recent behavior was anything to go by. He was dealing with a rather disturbing change in his biology, and couldn’t tell anyone but me about it in fear of dissection or worse. That had to weigh heavily on him.

It would explain him snapping over Gloria’s relationship with Marnie and Bede. He seemed okay with his sisters choices of potential significant others before the accident, would’ve even supported it in spite of Bede’s treatment of him. Now, however, because Gloria did not inform him of her choice, and her _extremely_ bad timing, I was surprised I wasn’t hearing the shouting from my house.

Gloria kinda deserved Victor’s wrath, though. She had two weeks to tell him, and she chose not to. Everyone knew Bede was fucked up because of undisclosed family trauma, which explained his need to place mind games, and he had a soft spot for Gloria and Marnie, but waiting to tell your brother you’re dating his bully is a horrible idea no matter the situation.

I sighed and closed my research journal, deciding to write more when I knew more. I wasn’t in the state of mind to continue, anyway. I was too preoccupied with worrying about Vic.

_I shouldn’t have let him leave_ I thought idly, but I knew I wouldn’t have been able to stop him, not for long. I tapped my my pencil to my lip, an old habit I had for when I was musing things over. Better than chewing the eraser, I supposed. _He’s not doing well in the mental department, but a therapist or a shrink won’t be able to help here, they’d label him crazy in a heartbeat. I’m doing my best to comfort him, but is that enough? I don’t want him to-_

I shut that last part down, hoping the idea had just been planted by Bede and not a subconscious conclusion.

I leaned back in my chair, sighing at the hopelessness of it all. I knew Victor was amazing, what he was didn’t matter to me, but I knew others wouldn’t see him that way. He was something new, beyond normal human limitation, plenty would rip him apart to try and replicate what he could do in a heartbeat. To others, he would just be an affront to nature, or a lab rat to observe. Nobody could know this secret, and I could tell it was eating Vic up inside.

I just wished I could do more for him.

There was a knock at my window.

Almost on instinct, despite being just a week since the behavior started, I opened the window without really looking at it, and an invisible figure flew into my room, diving into a nest of blankets already set up on my couch.

“That bad?” I asked, closing my journal and locking it up in my dresser. Victor didn’t respond, but he did poke his invisible head out to glare at me. I couldn’t see it, but boy could I feel it. “They were both there, weren’t they?”

“Yeah” He muttered, too upset to make himself visible as sunk into the blankets. “Bede got to me first. Gloria kicked the shit out of him, but I don’t feel any better about her relationship with him”

“What did he say?” I asked, moving to sit next to the slightly trembling mass of blankets. The mass shifted, and I assumed Victor had turned to face me. “Was it… Like Monday?”

“… Yeah. Marnie was the one who walked in on us. She wasn’t happy” he admitted, the silhouette of his shoulders slumping. “I don’t even know what they see in him. They know he tortures me for fun, but they still consider him a good partner”

“Maybe theres something else there that you’ve never seen” I suggested, earning myself another formless glare. “I’m not condoning his behavior, Vic, theres just things we don’t know about Bede. He’s really messed up, but he may have a heart for those two”

“Fuck him anyway” He growled, sinking further into his nest. I placed my hand on his head, ruffling his hair lightly. This seemed to help him calm down, as he returned to the visual plane a few moments later, a calm look on his face, eyes closed as he leaned into my touch.

_That’s adorable_ I thought to myself, pulling the other boy into a hug. He didn’t protest, just sunk into my hold, sighing.

“I’m so tired of all of this already” He muttered, staring down at his hand. “I’m not okay, you know that, right? I may never be okay”

“I know, and I can live with that” I replied, tightening my hold a bit. “Nothing short of my own death could tear me away from you”

“Don’t remind me of that inevitability, please” He replied, looking away from me, a far off look in his eyes. “I don’t want to think about that right now”

“Okay” I agreed, and things fell silent between us. Vic didn’t make any moves to get out of my hold, just staring off into nothing, refusing to meet my eyes.

_I can stay. I won’t leave you_ I promised inwardly, getting into a more comfortable position with Vic in my hold. He didn’t react, just kept staring, expression unreadable. _You’re something special, Vic. I hope you realize that one day._

I would devote my life to get him to realize that. He was an amazing person, in morality and strength, but his heart was just so fragile, along with his mental state. The accident messed him up, but not in the crazy way, in the depressed way. You’d have to be an idiot to not be able to tell.

I found myself tightening my hold again, Bede’s words from the beginning of the week instilling a protectiveness I couldn’t quite shake. Vic didn’t seem to notice or care, lost in his own little world. He was fragile, mentally speaking. I had my own theories on why, most involving his asshole of a sperm doner, but I didn’t dare ask. Something had cracked a long time ago, and never healed.

It would explain how terrified Vic was of everything to do with people. He lacked the ability to trust, at least those he didn’t know well, and it kind of hurt to know that. None of this situation was making anything better.

_But I’ll be damned if I can’t help him see past what he is_ I swore, looking down at my longtime crush, who was still in his normal body, still staring into nothingness. I gently brushed a few strands of hair out of his face, and pulled him as close to me as I could, nuzzling the back of his head. _You aren’t alone. You will never be alone if I have any say in it._

“I fucking hate myself” He muttered, not bothering to move out of the intimate position we were in. “You should hate me too. But you don’t. I’ll never understand why”

“You need to stop saying things like that. There’s nothing you should hate about yourself, not even your condition” I scolded lightly, picking my head up off his. “You’re amazing, but you need to stop attacking yourself. It’s not good for you”

“You’re one to talk” He muttered, slumping against my front completely to look up at me. “You compared yourself to Leon for so long, you almost passed that point of no return”

“That was two years ago. I’ve gotten over it. Lee’s the golden child, I’m the black sheep, I’ll never be able to do anything about that” I shrugged, happy I got over my useless desire to be the one in the spotlight for once. It would never happen, and I was okay with it. I had my own interests that made me happy. “And you’ll get over this, I’m sure. You’re gonna do some great things, Vic, I can tell”

“I will never understand you” He replied, looking away again with that stare. I gently tightened my grip again to keep his attention.

“Maybe not, but I understand you. You’re greater than you’ll ever know, if you keep beating yourself down for what you became that day” I chided him gently, putting one hand over his, intertwining our fingers. He looked up with mild confusion, and I just smiled back. “You’re something very precious to me, no matter who or what you are. You don’t need to be scared, I’ll always be here for you”

Victors face erupted into a lovely shade of red, and he immediately looked away again, without the PTSD stare, looking down at our intertwined fingers. I briefly considered going a step further, but shut the idea down. I wouldn’t be the one to take advantage of the pure loneliness Victor felt just for a desired relationship. Perhaps when he was better mentally, I’d give it a try, but not now.

“… You’re important to me, too” Vic admitted quietly, relaxing again. I smiled down at him when he looked back up, extricating my fingers from his so he could have his hand back. He looked slightly disappointed, but smiled a bit regardless. “I’m going to hold you to that, you know”

“Wouldn’t have it any other way, Vic” I replied, wrapping may arms around his chest to nuzzle his head again. “I’m here for you. You’ll never be alone, as long as I live, I promise”

He seemed somewhat satisfied by that answer, releasing a deep breath and relaxing into my hold, eyes closed with a soft smile on his face. He looked calm, and that was all I could hope for as of now. I smirked devilishly, pushing his bags back to get his attention.

“You were planning on staying over again tonight anyway, weren’t you?” I asked, smiling more when he got that flustered look again, eyes flickering a lovely shade of crimson.

“I-I totally forgot to ask” He admitted, shrinking into his hoodie with a bashful expression. “You don’t mind, do you?”

“Nah, I was just fucking with ya’” I replied, pulling him back into the hug as he squeaked in surprise. “I love your company, you’re welcome anytime. I’ve told you this”

“You’re mean” He grumbled, sticking his tongue out indignantly. I just smiled back, tightening my hold. He was cold, but stable, and I could feel his slightly slow, comfortable heartbeat. He really was the best, no matter what he was.

“ _God, I love you”_

“What did you just say!?”

_Oh Fuck_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lmao, Hop, you need to stop thinking out loud.   
> In more serious matters, I have a friend who's going through some shit I will not clarify or explain (So please do not ask), and I plan on being with her as much as possible. There may not be an update next week, so don't be too disappointed.   
> Your comments fuel me, tho, so please tell me how you like this so far, it may give me an extra boost during what limited free time I may have next week.


	7. Victor's father sucks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Talks are had. Vic's not sure of his feelings, but Hop's willing to wait. Also, Vic's father is an asshole  
> (Don't worry, Hop, Vic likes you back, he's just bad at processing)

He wasn’t serious. He couldn’t be, right?

I stared at him, I could see his mouth moving, red blush, and the rapid hand movements, but couldn’t hear a thing. I could only hear the blood rush, and the slow thumping of my heart.

“I-I don’t understand” I tried to say, but no sound came out.Hop froze mid-panicked flurry, tilting his head in concern as he said something else. “I can’t hear you”

I could tell he cursed something foul, but still couldn’t hear a thing. Hop grabbed my shoulders, brushing my bangs off my forehead as he tried to communicate, but my world was drowned out by the roar of blood in my ears. I shook my head. He moved his hands to cup my face, head tilted in that inquisitive way, but I couldn’t hear the question.

I flinched as I was pulled into a tight, forceful hug, suddenly aware of how fast I was breathing in comparison to Hop’s chest movements. Was I having a panic attack? Hop only did this when I was having one, but I couldn’t discern why I would be that stressed.

_God, I love you_

Oh, that.

I was made aware of the circular shape Hop was tracing on my back, the signal that I was hyperventilating. Gathering my thoughts, I followed the movements of Hop’s chest, making an attempt to follow along.

After a few minutes, the rushing in my ears died down, and the normal sounds of Hop’s room overtook them. His PC was turned on, the fan blowing rather loudly. An annoying bird wouldn’t shut up outside. Hop’s beating heart.

“Can you hear me now?” He whispered after a moment, sounding really concerned.

“Yeah” I replied, shaking a bit as I tried to get out of the hug. My grip did not loosen. “I want to let go, but I can’t”

“It’s okay, you don’t have to” Hop replied, relaxing a bit but not letting me out of his grip. “I think you legitimately went into shock”

“That would explain the shaking” I muttered, trying to still my arms, and failing. “Fuck, that was trippy. I never want to do it again”

“Sorry” Hop muttered, his face warming from where I could feel it on the top of my head..

_God, I love you_

“Joking about that wasn’t funny, you know” I scolded lightly, no malice behind my words. “But I know you didn’t mean to hurt me, so I forgive you”

Hop remained silent, nuzzling the top of my head, skin still on fire. It was kind of a nice relief from the constant cold I was subjected to, so I relaxed into his warmth, my shaking dying down after a few minutes.

“I wasn’t joking” Hop finally admitted, lifting his head to speak. “Take that how you want it, I know you weren’t ready to hear that, it just slipped out by mistake”

I stilled, heart seeming to stop.

“I-I don’t know what to say to that” I admitted, shaking a little more, but Hop tightened his grip to soothe me. “I really don’t know if I return your feelings or not. Everything’s so messed up, I’m so messed up, mentally, I don’t-“

“I know. I didn’t mean to say anything, that wasn’t supposed to be heard” Hop replied, tense in my grasp. “You don’t have to try and figure it out. I’ll be here even if you don’t return my feelings, nothing will change that”

“I don’t know what I did to deserve you” I muttered, tightening my grip. “I can’t give you an answer right now, but maybe I will sometime in the future. Can you really stand by me when my answer may be rejection?”

“Absolutely. Theres no question in my mind. Don’t concern yourself with my feelings, you’ve got a lot of things to work through, and I’d hate to distract you from healing” He replied immediately, without an hesitation. “I made a promise, I’ll keep it no matter what”

“… Thank you, Hop”

…………

I snuggled into the thick electric blanket that had been draped over my shoulders, the scalding heat relieving some of the cold within me. Hop was settled next to me, deliberately avoiding contact as he played some indie horror game on his laptop. I would’ve asked him to not be so rigid about touching, but then I remembered our earlier conversation, and kept quiet.

I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if I ended up stringing him along. I knew I was too unstable to get into a relationship, not to mention understand my own feelings or process his admission correctly, so I let him do what he wanted.

The only thing I really knew was that I didn’t feel awkward about his admission. I felt a little warm recalling his words, but that could very well just be the electric blanket.

“Fuck!” Hop screeched, jumping a bit in his spot as something screamed from the laptop. “Fuck this game, I’m out!”

“Horror just isn’t for you, huh?” I asked, peering over his shoulder to get a good look at the screen. “Whats the problem this time?”

“I keep getting people killed! This one dude got murdered because I tried to save his girlfriend!” He snapped, glaring at his screen like it wronged him. “Now I have to go back and figure out what I did wrong!”

“Is there a known monster or something?” I asked, looking over the screen as he returned to a save point. “Or just some dude with a knife?”

“I think it’s both. The guy I just got killed was impaled through the jaw by some huge thing hanging him on a hook” Hop replied, going through his motions again. “It was a tall, bony fuck”

“So, Wendigo probably. Did you have anything with fire you tossed aside?”

“… Fuck me” he muttered, as the character pulled out a flare gun. “I set this off last time”

“Pfft, you’re so bad at surviving these situations” I chuckled, as he clicked the prompt to refuse setting it off. “I am never letting you go cryptid hunting without me, it has become very clear you are going to die if you find something”

“Oh, shove it” Hop grumbled, playing through the scenario again. “If this is a native thing, I may have fucked myself hurting a bird”

“Oh my God, I’m getting you a weapon” I chuckled, watching him navigate the caves his character had fallen into. “I’m getting you several weapons, you cannot be trusted to stay alive in these situations”

“Shut your trap, I’m trying to keep these horny assholes alive” Hop refuted, trying to concentrate on his game. “Not like you could do better”

“I know not to fuck with wildlife, Hoppy kins” I chuckled, earning myself a blush from my companion in my situation. “I’m going to stay like this and help you stay alive, you clearly cannot be trusted for good decision making”

“I’m working on it, you jerk” He snapped, without malice, before he returned to the game. “I just want everyone to live, is that so wrong?”

“You just need to learn to add logic to that empathy, and maybe you won’t fuck up so much” I replied, making myself comfortable. “Beyond that, you can use me as a second opinion, I don’t want you getting hurt chasing down dangerous creatures. You would’ve died to that Skin-walker if I hadn’t been there”

“… Yeah, I know” Hop replied, shuddering underneath me. “You don’t need to worry, I asked your parents to draft something up for me so I can defend myself earlier. I won’t be going out unarmed again, I can promise you that”

“I’m holding you to these promises, Hop. If you break them, I _will_ lose my shit, and you know it” I warned, shooting a glare at him, red reflecting against the screen. He shuddered, tensing a bit.

“Please don’t do the eye thing while I’m playing a horror game. It’s extremely unnerving as it is”

“Right, sorry” I apologized, closing my eyes to wait for the glow to die out. “Sometimes its easier to turn these things on than turn them off, it drives me crazy”

“I bet it does, considering how easily flustered you get in any given social situation” Hop chuckled as I felt my cheeks burn. I opened my still glowing eyes again to give him a warning. “Sorry, not helping, got it”

We went silent again, Hop concentrating on his game as I mused over my own issues. It was easier to do this when I was close to Hop, he knew how to snap me out of a depressing spiral.

_You’re just like your father_

_You’re weak and small_

_I wonder, how long will it take for you follow in his footsteps_

_You look just like him, after all_

I wanted to punch Bede in his stupid face. It wasn’t my fault I was small, or that I looked so much like my father. I knew he and Bede had a history of some sort, my father tended to leave behind a lot of trauma wherever he went, but it didn’t give Bede the right to treat me like him.

I’d broken enough mirrors in attempts to reject my own looks, after all. Even before I stepped into that portal.

I gently rubbed the old scars on my knuckles, grimacing at the thoughts my father always seemed to instill in me. He never saw me as anything worthwhile, just the expendable twin, and he told me such so often behind closed doors. I was nothing to him, and would be nothing. I was weak, useless, and disposable, a tool for him to break.

I would never be my sister to him. I wasn’t jealous of her, she hated him too, but I was the one he loved to torture, reminding me that I would never be anything worth affection or praise.

Just a useless little pawn, free for home genetic experimentation.

“Okay, I can almost _hear_ you thinking about your sperm donor again” Hop chided, snapping me out of my thoughts. He closed his laptop, and gave me a flat look, as he always did when I got lost in the labyrinth that was my shitty childhood. “For fucks sake, the rich prick has been gone for years, he’s not worth the passing thought”

“Its not so easy to forget what he put me through” I replied, shuddering as I remembered the needles. “You know what he was doing to me when mom found him”

“He was trying to forcefully induce psychic abilities with dangerous chemicals, of course I remember, you almost died” Hop replied, crossing his arms with a glare. “And I know that wasn’t the only time he did that shit, with all your absences when we were younger”

“The irony of what he was trying to do then does not escape me” I muttered, levitating a nearby pencil for emphasis. “It makes me think he was somewhat responsible for this power”

“So what if he was? Its your power, you get to choose how its used, not that bastard” Hop growled, grabbing my wrist to settle the shaking. “I swear, I will gladly stab that bastard if he somehow finds out about this and tries to get to you. You aren’t some tool of his, Victor, you need to get that through your head”

“Yeah, but it’s kind of hard when Bede just keeps reminding me of my old man” I muttered, spinning the pencil in a circle. “Not my fault I look so much like him”

“No shit. You may have some of his looks, but you have some pretty stark differences” Hop replied, tightening his grip on my wrist to combat the shaking. “You’re a sarcastic, foul mouthed shortie with the biggest goddamn heart I’ve ever seen. You’re sensitive, funny, caring, and you love those close to you so fiercely I’m blown away sometimes. You are not your father, you’re something better than he could ever hope to be a fraction of”

The shaking stopped, and I found my heart was pounding at the ferocity of the stare Hop had fixed me with. It was so full of love, I couldn’t look away, my cheeks warming a bit.

“That means a lot to me, Hop” I said quietly, a small smile forming on my lips. Hop relaxed a bit and pulled me into a hug, patting my back. “Thank you”

“Anytime, mate” He replied, tightening his hold a bit. “You mean a lot to me”

_You mean a lot to me, too. Probably more than I’m willing to admit now, but I hope I can soon._

_You’re my world, Hop_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fyi, Victors dad's name is named Seth Chernobog, but his family took Kabu's last name of Hearth when Vic's mom remarried. Seth's the reason Bede was orphaned in this AU. He made sure Bede watched his parents die at four.  
> Seth is a sick fuck. And since Victor looks kind of like him, Bede thinks Vic is evil too. That does not excuse the bullying, but theres the explanation for Bede's behavior.   
> You can look forward to meeting Seth in the future :)  
> Anywho, please comment, it fuels me


	8. Enter: Aquarius

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vic fight this first ghost, we get a peek at what's to come.

I slammed my locker, books securely tucked away. The best part of study hall at the end of the day was I could do my homework early, and leave my textbooks at school. I didn’t need the extra baggage, in any sense.

I pulled my backpack back over my shoulder, and returned to the secluded section of the library, where Hop was going through my parents Ecto-Encyclopedia (Lord knew how he managed to convince them to let him study it), barely halfway through the thick tome.

“Find anything useful?” I asked quietly, settling down with as little noise as possible. Hop groaned, marking his place and slamming the book shut. “That bad, huh?”

“I’m getting sick of seeing the word “Ecto”. Five more minutes of this and I may actually lose my mind” He groaned, slamming his head into the desk. I chuckled, ruffling his wild dark purple locks. He grumbled at the touch, batting halfheartedly at my hand.

“Hey, you’re not the one who accidentally dropped in on two juniors fucking in the men’s bathroom in the west hallway” I replied, shuddering. “I was so disgusted I couldn’t stomach anything”

“Oh, _gross_ ”

“I _know,_ the dude had the girl bent over-“

“Oh my God, stop elaborating!” Hop squawked, covering his ears. I chuckled, mildly dead inside from what I had walked in on. “I’m mortified by just hearing about it”

“Yeah, I ended up stuck being invisible for all of lunch” I admitted, scratching the side of my head. “Unfortunately, that was not the first time I’ve walked in on people fucking in this school, so I’m not as disturbed. Remember that one Tuesday before The Accident?”

“Oh my Christ, really? That’s _disgusting_ , no wonder you weren’t talking” Hop shuddered, covering his mouth as he sat up. “I fucking hate our student body”

“Join the club” I muttered, massaging my temples to try and chase out the unsavory memories. “Some of the kids here need to be castrated, Jesus”

“Fuck it, I’m going back to this” Hop grumbled, re-opening the encyclopedia. I chuckled, and relaxed against him, causing a little flinch. Hop wasn’t used to me initiating touch, but he was getting over it.

Honestly, I could’ve stayed there for the rest of the period, but life had other plans.

A shrill alarm went off ten minutes later, literally stopping my heart and startling Hop so badly he jumped up, leaving me to crash on the floor.

“What the fuck!?” I shouted more at the alarm than Hop, jumping back up and covering my hyper-sensitive ears.

“I’m sorry, I was-“

“Not you, dipshit, what the fuck is this alarm!? It’s so fucking loud!” I shouted, glaring up at the blaring PA as a voice started speaking.

“ _Code Green, Code Green! Students and Faculty, evacuate the premises immediately! This is not a drill, repeat, this is not a drill!”_ Vice Principal Sonia was loud, and sounding panicked. I looked at Hop, who was hurriedly stuffing his supplies back into his bag.

“Doesn’t a Code Green mean a student has been caught with drugs!?” I asked in a yell, as we rushed out of the back section of the library, heading for the emergency section. “Why would Sonia freak out about that? Half the school is already on crack!”

Hop skidded to a stop, looking like a deer in the headlights, and I stopped running when I noticed.

“No, that’s what it _used_ to be! Your parents convinced Principal Magnolia to change a Code Green’s meaning to _Ghost Attack_! It was in the new handbook!” Hop shouted, before whipping around and running deeper into the school.

“Ack, Hop! What are you doing!?” I screeched, transforming and flying after him. I caught up within seconds, and grabbed him around the wait, pulling him up in the air to stop him before he went further. “Have you lost your goddamn mind!? What possessed you to run _away_ from the exit with that information!?”

Hop gave me a look from where I held him like I was an idiot.

“It’s a real ghost, Vic! We can learn something about your condition if we observe it!” He replied, excited and loud enough to go over the speakers. “Maybe I can get a sample too!”

“What, no! My parents will be here any minute if it’s a ghost attack!” I refused, turning around midair to fly us out. Hop grabbed at my hoodie to try and stop me. “No, Hop! They see me like this, I am a dead man!”

“Your parents are at North Mercy again! They won’t be here in thirty minutes at least, even with your moms driving skills” Hop tried to argue, but I wasn’t hearing it.

“Nope, we’re leaving out the back where nobody can see us. We can discuss this later!” I snapped, going invisible and picking up speed.

We were almost to the back of the school when the cause of the Code Green dropped from the ceiling. I stopped dead in my flight, giving myself and possibly Hop whiplash, as the creature hissed angrily.

The ghost stood an easy six feet tall, standing bipedal with its long, spiked tail lashed angrily, a pair of small, shark like fins at the end of it. Three flat horns extending symmetrically out of its animalistic head. It had a sharp snout, filled with razor sharp fangs, and sharp, clawed hands and feet. It glowed green, but had faint hints of black and blue, with a black substance dripping from its mouth and pink, slitted eyes.

“Nope!” I shouted, immediately moving to fly the other way, but the creature was fast, grabbing my ankle and yanking me back, causing me to drop Hop in the process . “Ow! You little sh-!”

I didn’t have time to finish that sentiment, as I was slammed into a wall of lockers, _hard._ I screamed in pain, falling flat on the floor as the creature released my ankle. Acting on instinct, I flipped over onto my back and kicked at the creature as it pounced from behind, hitting it square in the stomach and making it spit up more black stuff before slamming into the ceiling. 

I quickly stood up as the ghost hit the ground, regain my composure before it got back up. I turned toward Hop, who was holding his camera and _recording_ the fight. The ghost was up and looking at him hungrily, getting into position.

“Hop, get the fuck out of here!” I shouted, just before the creature lunged at him. I called up the feeling for my telekinesis, and slammed the creature into the floor, wasting no time in jumping on top of the ghost to pin it. “Move it!”

“No way am I leaving you here with that!” Hop replied, pulling something out of his pocket. He pressed something on the object, and a freaking three foot blade formed in his hand, exactly like a lightsaber. “I told you, I’m prepared for these things now!”

“When the fuck-!?” I started to ask, before the creature flung me off. I stopped midair, just in time to watch the creature swing for Hop. Hop was quick to dodge, slashing at the ghosts arm, cutting it clean off. It screamed and reared back, holding the oozing black stump. I took my queue and tacked the ghost again, twisting its good arm behind its back and slamming its head back into the concrete to knock it out. “Now, where the fuck did you get that!?”

“Kabu. He was pleased to know I wanted to have a ghost weapon to protect you, so he had one made for me” Hop chuckled, sheathing the blade and shoving it back in his pocket, trading it out for a vial. “Now, how about we gat a sample from ugly here before your parents show up?”

“”Ugly” almost took your face off” I reminded him, shifting my position so he could get the oozing green substance from the creatures mangled arm. “If I hadn’t been practicing the psychic stuff recently, you would’ve been badly hurt. Next time, just _run_ when I tell you to”

“Wheres the fun in that?” Hop asked idly, taking a good chunk of goo and sealing the vial. I shot him a dirty look, and lightly punched the ground next to the ghosts head in frustration, making a pretty sizable dent despite the lack of force. “Okay! I’ll run next time, happy?”

“Very” I growled, sarcasm evident. He stepped back, and I slammed the creatures head down again, making sure it was good and properly out cold. “I’m taking this back to the portal. _You_ are going outside to cover for me until I get back, got it?”

“ _Fine._ Be quick, though, we don’t have much time before your parents show” Hop warned, before he took off down the hall. I made sure he really was outside, before I picked up the creature (who was surprisingly light) and flew off invisibly back home.

I thanked whatever God there was that the ghost stayed out cold the whole way back. I phased into the basement of my house less than five minutes later, setting the creature on the ground so I could figure out how it got through the doors to my parents portal.

_Odd, theres no sign of forced entry, and the ghost couldn’t have phased through the supertangible doors_ I mused, running an intangible hand over the hyper-dense steel. _Could someone have let it out?_

“ _You_ ” A guttural voice hissed startling me out of my musings. I turned to face the ghost I had brought back, who was trying to push itself up. “Who are you?”

“The guy who will break your legs if you try anything else funny” I shot back, as the creature sat down on its rear, rubbing the stump. They were no longer oozing the black substance, and their colors we no longer obscured by green, but they still held the glow of the deceased. “I didn’t know you could talk”

“I wasn’t in my right mind to communicate” the ghost replied, displaying their arm to show to me. “I would’ve already regenerated this if I had been. Where am I?”

“You don’t know?” I asked, turning away from the controls to give the ghost an incredulous look. They just stared blankly at me as their arm reformed. “This is Earth. You just attacked my school and tried to kill my beast friend. You don’t remember that?”

“Only bits and pieces. I was out of my mind, I know that much. I don’t even know how I managed to get out of the Zone, or how to get back” They replied, standing up once their arm fully reformed. “My name is Aquarius, I’m one of the Zone’s more solitary Kaisharks”

“Victor” I responded out of politeness more than trust. “I’ll open the portal for you, but do me a favor and don’t come back here. My parents will literally kill you”

“I am unconcerned with a secondary death, but thank you for the warning” Aquarius replied, as I opened the portal doors. “Thank you for your kindness, friend. Most of my brethren would’ve killed me had I attacked them like that”

“I don’t kill if I don’t have to. Now do me a favor and stay out of trouble, I don’t want a second encounter with whatever made you go mad” I replied, pointing to the portal. “Now get going, I’ve got to get back to school before anyone misses me”

“Okay,I’m going, you interesting creature. I may come back to check on you, you seem rather fun” Aquarius chuckled, stepping back into the portal. “Thanks again, and take care of that mate of yours with the killer katana skills!”

And with that, the strange ghost was gone with a wave, the doors shutting behind him.

“Nutjob” I muttered, flying off to head back to school, trying to ignore the blush that came with the thoughts of Hop in a skintight ninja suit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aquarius is going to be a Major reoccurring character. Since Danny had two friends who knew his secret, why not Vic? He doesn't know the full secret yet, but Aquarius did pick up that Victor wasn't a normal ghost. I would've turned one of the characters from the Pokémon games into a ghost to take his place, but I couldn't think of anyone that would mesh well with both Victor and Hop, so Aqua was born.  
> He shall visit again in the next chapter. Aqua isn't one to waste the opportunity to make a friend or two, even if he unintentionally tried to kill them upon the first meeting.   
> I have a feeling you're gonna like him  
> Until next time!


	9. Aqua and the Drunkard

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aquarius has joined the party!

I was back at the door.

After I was let back into the Zone, I couldn’t get my mind off the strange ghost who showed me mercy after I almost murdered his friend. He had such an odd feeling to him, a purity that had never been touched by the ways of the Zone. Ghosts, especially the other Kaisharks, were vengeful beyond sense. Even I could barely suppress the urge to take revenge when I was wronged, even if the slight was an accident.

Yet he hadn’t killed me. I almost killed someone precious to him, and he still decided to spare me, even sent me home. I was curious as to why.

_Surely he won’t be that hard to find_ I assured myself, looking over the sealed off door to the other side. I didn’t remember how I got into the living world the first time, but it couldn’t have been that difficult if I could’ve done it in that frenzy.

I gently ran my claws over the metal doors, feeling for a discrepancy. Humans always had an escape plan for dangerous situations, at least the ones smart enough to build a portal to the Zone, so if I was right, there would be an emergency switch to open the doors from this side.

It took a few minutes before my claws scraped against a button that blended in to the framework as a bolt. With a grin, I pressed down on it, and the doors flew open, revealing the room I had been taken to a few days ago. Keeping my head, I turned invisible, and exited the portal, moving to the controls for the doors on the living side. The command to close the doors was a simple as flipping a switch, but to open the doors again, I’d need a passcode.

Deciding it’d be best to not give anything undesirable the chance to slip through the portal in my absence, I closed the doors, and flew out of the house, landing outside to get a better view of the house so I knew where to return.

It wouldn’t be hard to spot.

_Alright, time to drop the scales_

It may seem weird, but I could still assume a human form, clothes and all. Most Kaisharks did not possess the ability, so I was unique in more than a few ways. I could pick any age between teens and late thirties, but I couldn’t change what I looked like in terms of features. I assumed my human form was just what I looked like before I died, minus the obviously glowing, pink slitted eyes.

I decided on a form that matched the apparent age of the merciful human ghost, mid-teens, and had to readjust myself to the drop in height. I was tall for the age, but not nearly as tall as my undead form, so the change gave me a bit of vertigo.

I got over it soon enough, and moved to start walking down the street, unassuming in the early afternoon light. I still glowed in this form, but it was significantly lessened, and completely unnoticeable in most sunlight. I reached for my core, instinctively looking for the ghosts unique signature.

_Now, where might you be?_

………….

I questioned Leon’s sanity sometimes. 

Case in point: I was tending to a drunk Hop after Leon spiked the gatorade he packed for lunch. Heavily. Without anyone noticing.

I was going to punch him next time I saw him.

“You’re so _pretty_!” Hop purred drunkenly, leaning against me as I dragged him up to his front door, both of us being excused from afternoon classes after I explained the situation. I grumbled halfheartedly, unlocking house and dragging his useless ass inside, abusing my psychic powers to lock the door behind us. “Can I get you a cocoa, cutie?~”

“Knock it off Hop, you’re drunk” I muttered, setting him down on the couch. Hop tried to hold me down with him, but I simply phased through his grip, making him audibly whine in displeasure as he flopped to the side. “Stay there”

“I’ll do it if you give me a kiss~” He replied, flipping over and smiling stupidly in my direction. I rolled my eyes and headed for the kitchen, in search of cookies and Hop’s favorite coffee, knowing both things would help a bit with the situation. “I’m waiting, Vicky!~”

“ _No,_ Hop, where’s the goddamn coffee?” I shouted back, patience growing thin with his drunk flirting.

“I was right, you _are_ fun!” A slightly familiar voice purred from behind me, and I whirled around to face the owner. He stood an inch taller than Hop, with black hair holding a single streak of blue over one of his pink, glowing eyes. He wore plain black and blue attire, hoodie matching the markings of the ghost I sent back to the Zone. He was also glowing, which wasn’t boding well. “Remember me, friend?”

“How the fu-“

“You’re very unique, friend, you weren’t hard to track down” Aqua chuckled, floating up to settle his head in his hands, with his back legs crossed, like he was a girl gossiping on a bed. “It gets rather lonely in the Zone, so I decided to come find you to hang out. Just in time, too, if your drunk friend is anything to go by”

“Who are you talking to in there?” Hop asked, sounding highly confused.

“A friend on the phone, I’ll be back in a minute” I called back, earning a toothy grin from Aquarius. I rolled my eyes and tried to ignore him, pulling out Hop’s favorite caramel creamer.

“I wouldn’t recommend the sweet coffee for drunkenness, the bitter kind works better” Aqua interrupted, snatching the creamer. “Make it black, it should shock some sense back into your friend”

“Why do you know that?” I asked, putting the creamer back to follow the advice. Aqua simply grinned wider, showing two rows of straight, sharp teeth.

“I had a lot of fun when I was alive, let’s just say that” he replied, flipping over to stare at me upside down. “So, what’s the deal with you? You a ghost with an obsession with his humanity, or what?”

“That is none of your business” I replied, turning to tend to the brewing coffee, as the old coffeemaker was known to spark dangerously. “You shouldn’t even be here, I told you to stay in the Zone”

“Meh, I don’t tend to listen to warnings” He replied, gently running his hand over my wrist. “If I did what I was told, I’d still be in a cult, and would never have met such an interesting person”

“Cult?”

“I’d explain it in exchange for you telling me what’s up with you” Aqua replied, pressing down on my wrist, which I did not care to interfere with. I was probably the first human contact he’d had in decades, if not longer.

“Nevermind, I don’t need to know” I muttered, removing my wrist from his grasp to pour some bitter coffee into a mug. “Any other recommendations for alleviating drunkenness?”

“Some food and some sleep will do your friend some good. It’ll help with the oncoming hangover” Aqua replied, following me back into the living room. Hop looked confused for a moment, before his gaze refocused on me, and he grinned wide again.

“Vicky~” he purred, sitting up with a flinch, barely able to hold his body up straight. “Can I get that kiss now?”

“No. I don’t kiss drunks” I replied flatly, setting the mug in his hands. “Drink all of that”

I watched as he eagerly took a sip, before he choked in surprise, making a face. A glare killed off any protests.

“So, care to explain your pulse?” Aqua said after a moment, reminding me of his existence. Before I could hastily deflect the question, Hop butted in.

“He’s only half dead, as far as we could figure out. Which was better than dead, I don’t think I would get over losing the love of my life” Hop babbled, giving me a loving gaze through his drunk mind. “You friend _is_ a ghost, right? It was safe to say that?”

“Ooh, thats cool!” Aqua praised as I blanched, staring at Hop like he’d lost his goddamn mind. “Also, yes, I am a ghost. The one you cut the arm off of on Wednesday, specifically. You really need to not say things like that to people you don’t know, though. Dead or not”

“Ehhhh, you seem cool. Sorry about th-weren’t you a shark man with ghost rabish?” Hop babbled, looking closer at Aquarius. “You should only have one arm”

“I’m regenerative, all good”Aqua replied, now floating above my head to show off. “Kaisharks are like the lizards of the Zone, funnily enough”

“Ooh, I wonder if Vic can regenerate-“

“We are not testing that” I growled, flopping in a chair. “And you are never allowed to touch alcohol again. Period”

“S’all Lee’s fault” He slurred, shaking the coffee cup at me. “He abused my weakness to force me to confesh”

“Confe- I’m gonna kill him” I corrected, realizing what he meant. “I’m going to break his legs and kill him, that bitch knows better!”

“You’ve gotten drunk before?” Aquarius asked Hop as I stewed in my fury, mulling over the ways I could take painful revenge. “Or are you just a lightweight?”

“Both. And It’s like truth serum, according to Lee. I admitted my feelings the first time he did it”

“Fee-oh, wow, okay, you really are a loose lipped drunk, Jesus” Aqua muttered, floating over to Hop. “Luckily, I know a snooze button to keep you quiet for next time”

“Really? Wha-“ Hop asked brightly, before Aqua gave him a quick pinch to the shoulder, and Hop slumped over, out cold, empty coffee cup tumbling onto the floor. I gave the ghost a look.

“Cult leader used that on me several times when I asked too many questions. Thats all I’m gonna say” Aqua replied, smiling mischievously as he put Hop in a more comfortable position on the couch. “You have quite the admirer”

“Shut it” I muttered, face darkening a few shades. “Not a word about that other thing, either. I don’t enjoy being like this, and definitely don’t want my secret getting out”

“Oh, I won’t say anything. Nobody in the Zone is very accepting of something like me or you, so my lips are sealed” Aqua replied, mimicking zipping his lips as he shifted back to his more shark-like form, grinning a bit. “But, I will need a bit of incentive”

“What? I don’t have anything to offer”

“I’ll be blunt. I don’t like the Zone at all, so I’ll keep your secret on two conditions” Aqua bargained, holding up his black, scaled hand. “One: Unrestricted access to the Ghost Portal, and the codes to open and close it at any time so I can come and go as I please”

“As long as my parents aren’t around, I can provide that. Whats the second condition?” I asked, prepared to give most anything to keep my secret.

“Two: I can hang out with you both at any time. You seem fun, and I’m pretty much done with the Zone” Aqua finished, settling down on the top of the chair I was sitting in, grinning with that blue streaked snout. “I’ll keep a more human form in public, obviously”

“….That’s it?”

“That’s it. I’m lonely, man, and no ghost has let me wrong them by accident without fucking me over” He replied, smiling at me as he twitched the tip of his tail. “Plus, you two seem to be the types to have fun adventures. I’d like to get in on that”

“… You swear, if I give you these two things, you’ll help me keep my secret, no matter what?” I asked, making sure he understood the situation.

“Absolutely. I’m a ghost of my word, unlike the rest of my species” he chuckled, moving to float in front of me, holding out his hand with a wink. “Your secret will be safe with me”

“The you have yourself a deal, Aquarius” I agreed, shaking his hand.

“Again, please just call me Aqua”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hop is a lose-lipped drunk  
> Aqua ships the train  
> Vic wants to completely die
> 
> Truly, a trio for the ages. 
> 
> Aqua will be popping up a lot, joining adventures and cryptid hunts, but he won't be getting in the way of the Train ship. He's supportive of LGBTQplus, despite dying at sixteen in the 80's (which is all you get for now about his past), and totally sees their chemistry. 
> 
> If you have any questions about this character, please ask them in the comments. I'll answer them happily, and even if the answer has spoilers, I'll be vague enough to not ruin anything.
> 
> Comments fuel my writing drive, so for now, I'll see you next week.
> 
> Happy Thanksgiving!


	10. Never Give Aqua Sugar

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Victor discovers he has super strength, and proceeds to have a little fun with it.  
> Hop treats his crush like an innocent child, and gets stuck up in a tree  
> Aquarius had a milkshake, and now will spend the next two hours robbing ice cream stores on a sugar high
> 
> Moral of the story, don't give a shark a milkshake

The hangover I got from whatever Lee had slipped into my gatorade had ruined the rest of my plans for the weekend. However, I found the experience strangely worth it. I got to talk at length with a ghost who died in the eighties while Vic practiced using his psychic abilities by reorganizing my room about six times over. Aqua was quite the character, too, and while he wouldn’t share any details about his life before the Zone, I learned a lot about his cult-oriented species, and how much Aqua hated them all.

With good reason, too. Kaisharks in their cult were fucking insane. 

“Head out of the clouds, Hop, you’re supposed to be my lookout” I flinched as Vic jabbed me in the shoulder with a stick, Aqua laughing his ass off to the side. I shook my head, returning to my position to keep an eye out for any wandering members of the public who might catch Vic in his ghost form practicing his psychokinesis. This had become our after-school activity since the discovery of Vic’s psychokinetic abilities, but we never had a third person hanging out with us. However, I was still lookout, as I assumed Aqua might have some good tips for Vic’s other ghostly abilities.

Judging by how much he was laughing when Vic dropped an old can on his head, I may have jumped the gun on that assumption.

“Shut the fuck up!” Vic snapped, winging the aforementioned cylindrical tin at the ghost, who simply winked as the can passed harmlessly through him and into a tree at his back. Where it stuck with a sickening _crack_. “ _You_ don’t have psychic powers, _you_ don’t get to laugh when I fuck up”

“Yet you chose to throw that can with your arm” Aqua chuckled, gesturing to the tin that had become one with a tree. “You might have hit me with the psychic shit”

_Oh Jesus Christ, that_ wasn’t _psychically augmented!?_ I thought, looking at the can with horror as it wrenched itself from the tree, displaying a sizable dent that the initial impact had caused. I watched at the can violently beamed Aqua in the back, causing the ghost to stumble midair and faceplant into the ground, where the old can proceeded to smack him down repeatedly when he tried to get up.

“Alright, uncle! Uncle!” Aqua squawked, trying to smack the can away with his tail without much success. Vic just smirked triumphantly, and the can flew into his outstretched hand, ceasing its assault upon the rouge Kaishark. “ _Fuck_ , you are a violent little midget!”

“I may be small, but if I can beat the shit out of you with an empty can, that doesn’t say much about you, now does it?” Vic replied, crushing the rusted aluminum in one hand without any sign of strain. “Hmm, a poorly made can, too”

“Bullshit! That thing was lined with steel!” Aqua whined, as Vic tossed the now useless projectile into a nearby bin.

“Yeah, Vic, I think you’re displaying signs of major strength augmentation” I spoke up, giving up on keeping an eye out since nobody heard the screaming. Aqua raised an eyebrow as he stood up, and Vic just gave me a look of pure skepticism. “It makes sense! You punched a hole in a tile floor the other day, and you just dented a tree with a rusty can of beans!”

“That means nothing” Vic replied, shifting back to his normal, adorable brunette self, waving a hand in dismissal, watching Aqua push himself up with little issue. “Wanna go try a twenty first century milkshake? I’ll pay for it as an apology for beating you with a can”

“Apology accepted!”

……………

“Why do you constantly have me doing dumb things?” Vic asked as we settled in the backyard of the Hearth’s, Aqua clutching a newly acquired milkshake like it was a lifeline. An old pile of scrap that had melted together after a lab explosion had been tossed back here recently, and hopefully had cooled down enough to test my theory.

“Ya’ll be happy you didn’t grow up in the eighties, milkshakes back then were so bland in comparison to this godsend” Aqua raved, looping through the air with the most _hilarious_ look of delirium I had ever seen. Vic was even cracking a smile, in spite of his annoyance with me. “You could chop me in half, and this would be worth it!”

“We get it, Aqua, please stop flying around like a wingless dragon, my parents would _absolutely_ shoot you on sight if they came home early” Vic warned, grabbing Aqua’s leg with his telekinesis and forcing him to land on the ground.

“Okay, back to what we were doing before” I said, clapping my hands together to get the resident half-ghosts attention. “Without using your ghost form or telekinesis, I want you to try picking up that scrap heap. And please, actually _try_. Good results don’t come from apathy”

“If I injure myself doing this dumb shit, you owe me the fucking hospital bill” Vic warned, before he stretched out and got into a position to pick up the absurdly huge pile of melted metal.

He picked it up with way too much force, which caused him to tumble back with surprise and drop the warped metal structure behind him. Aqua chuckled as Vic landed on his butt, looking so shocked I was surprised he hadn’t made a sound.

“Pfft, that face!” Aqua howled, doubling over as Vic just stared ahead like a traumatized vet.

“Holy shit, that barely weighed a _thing_ ” Vic muttered, staring at me like I had just told him he won a billion dollars. He hen jumped up and grabbed the heap of scrap and pulled it into the air again without a single hint of strain. “Holy fuck, this is so _awesome_!”

“A midget with super strength, who would suspect that?” Aqua mused jokingly, watching Vic easily throw the heap over the ten foot tall fence the Hearth’s had installed, the metal clattering into a dead-end alleyway on the other side. “Your boyfriend sure stuck gold with his unique powers so far” 

“He’s not- wait, his powers aren’t common in the Zone?” I asked, my curiosity overshadowing my embarrassment. Aqua shrugged, taking a sip from his still-freezing drink.

“I mean, not really? Not many ghosts get more than the basic three abilities. Kaisharks get a unique fourth basic upon formation, along with a few other prevalent species, and then theres the obsession-based ghosts, and their powers are aligned with whatever their thing may be” Aqua counted off in explanation, before gesturing to Victor, who was now tossing heavy failed inventions over the wall, cackling with glee. “I haven’t met a ghost yet who has his combination of abilities”

“…I think it’d be best if you didn’t mention that to Vic, then. He’s not been doing well with the whole half-dead thing to begin with” I warned, grabbing the currently human-looking ghost by one of his shoulders. “He’s kinda damaged in the head from childhood trauma I can’t disclose, and the general thought of him being completely alone sends him into a bad spiral of depression and anxiety”

“…That explains _way_ too much about his behavior”

“Believe it or not, before the accident, he was _super_ mild-mannered, passive, and quiet, even with me, though he still cursed a lot” I explained, gesturing to the brunette who was now breaking random failed weapons before throwing them. “He still is super anxious and quiet when it comes to any kind of social interaction at school, but as soon as he’s alone with someone he knows, he just flips the switch with his temperment”

“Well, no shit, if I lived on the edge like he does all day, I’d probably start cussing everyone out too” Aqua pointed out, gesturing to the house behind us. “Becoming half ghost with ghost-hunter parents _cannot_ be good for his mental health, if its already as bad as you told me it was”

“Yeah, it is. When you earn his trust, he’ll tell you all about his insecurities. They’re _bad_ ” I replied, watching as Vic hurled a particularly heavy-looking piece of metal over the fence.

“I don’t think it’s just trust he has with you” Aqua chuckled, gaining my full attention. “Look, man, I’ve worked enough of the scene to know what pining looks like, and you got it _bad_. Last guy I knew who had that look was going for my only female friend, and I am ninety percent sure he nailed her after I died”

“What the hell kind of _scene_ were you working where that kind of identification was necessary?”

“Oh, I was a stripper starting at fourteen” Aqua replied nonchalantly, which made my jaw drop and caught Victor’s attention from the other side of the yard.

“You were a _WHAT_!?” Vic asked, looking quite possibly even more shocked than right after he lifted the initial mound of scrap. He flew over to us, most of the scrap dumped in the yard now gone. “Seriously, what the fuck did you just say, because it sounded suspiciously like “Sex Worker””

“Nah, just a stripper-slash-pole dancer at a nightclub. I didn’t dig that kind of action. I just lied about my age to get into the stripping business because I couldn’t get a job anywhere else” Aqua replied, idly mixing his drink with the straw. “I looked a lot older than I was at fourteen, so nobody questioned it”

“What the actual _fuck_ , man?” Vic asked, an incredulous look on his cute little face. “I am slightly pissed that you could pass for a legal adult at our age, but I can only pass for being fucking _twelve”_

_“_ I mean, the joint I worked at was pretty scummy, nobody discussed their age there for a good reason” Aqua shrugged, a wistful look crossing his face. “God, I tried a lot of shit in that club”

“I don’t want to know” I cut him off before he could elaborate, covering Vic’s ears as I lowered my voice. “He doesn’t need the temptation”

“I can still hear you, ya dick” Vic grumbled, forcefully removing my hands from his head. “And unfortunately for you, I can get my revenge for that”

He turned and gave me a truly evil grin, before he slipped behind me and grabbed me by the waist, lifting me up in the air a-la Lion King style with a shout of pure elation,

“Ack! Victor!” I shouted, surprised by how strong his grip was. Vic just took off down the yard, flying up the only tree within the boundary, and dropped me off at the uppermost branch, landing easily down at the bottom of the trunk while I grabbed onto the sturdiest brach nearby. “Vic! Get me down!”

“Nope” Vic replied with a sassy grin, leaning back against the tree and looking up at me through the branches, a wild grin spread across his face. “You can get down yourself, or call the fire department. You underestimate the level of petty I’m willing to go to today”

“Don’t take out your resentment of Gloria treating you like a child out on me!” I screeched, shivering a bit at the distance I was at from the ground. “Seriously, Vic, help me!”

“If I had to go out of my comfort zone for the last month because of you, you can get out of your comfort zone because of me for an hour or two”Vic replied, sticking out his tongue with that wicked grin I sometimes saw on Gloria when Bede took things too far. “Don’t worry, I’m not going anywhere, so you to all the time in the world to figure out how to get down”

“Well, while you two resolve your little quarrel, I’m gonna go rob a store for more milkshakes. See you in an hour!” Aqua called, taking off rather suddenly with his now-empty cup and leaving me alone with Vic for the first time in three days.

It took maybe half a second for Aqua to vanish into the apartment buildings of the other side of Galar.

“Maybe it wasn’t the best idea to hook him up with sugar” Vic mused, before looking back up at me with a mischievous grin that made me swoon a bit. “You look like a frightened cat”

“Fuck you”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, yes, Aquarius was also a stripper from fourteen until he turned sixteen, which was the age he died at. He has done a mired of drugs, but only once each, as personal experimentation.   
> Aqua was a responsible partier  
> Hop also has a fear of heights, so you can guess how he's gonna get over that :3  
> The ship will take off a little bit in the next chapter, so look forward to it!  
> Your comment fuel me, especially since finals start next week for me :/  
> Wish me luck!


	11. Calm Before the Storm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hop and Victor go flying!

I ignored Hop as I tapped away at my coloring app, a lovely stress reliever I’d discovered last week. Even the shaking branch didn’t bother me, I had been practicing my flying, so I was unconcerned by the possibility of a fall.

“Quit trembling and sit up, pussyboy” I muttered, because while I was unconcerned for myself, Hop was a very different story. “I came up here so you would _stop_ clinging to the branch like an anxious monkey on cocaine”

“Well, what _else_ am I supposed to steady myself on!?” He snapped, glaring up at me from where he had all four of his limbs wrapped around the very thick branch. “A goddamn mime’s handle!?”

I promptly slammed a fist down on his side of the branch, causing it to shake violently, and the screech that followed was unexpectedly hilarious. I chuckled, before I was unexpectedly bodied.

The plan there was to get Hop to remember the trunk was a more sensible option for support, but instead, I had been jumped by the other teenager, and found his arms wrapped around _me_ instead.

“Ack, _Hop_ , you were supposed to grab the _trunk!_ ” I snapped, wriggling in the tight hold I was in. I was aware I could phase out or break free with ease, but then Hop might fall and break something, so I refrained. “I am not your brace! _Let go_!”

He refused silently, of course, and started shaking again with his eyes screwed shut. I sighed, knowing he was probably out of it with terror, so I took my consequence for scaring him, and returned to my phone, trying not to drop it as I waited for him to calm down.

I may look like the worlds biggest prick, turning Hop’s fear against him in a fit of petty revenge, but I had my own reason for wanting Hop to get over his fear of heights, even just a little bit.

I had been practicing flying at night, a lot, because I was having trouble sleeping. I suspected it was my new nature, but since I was just mildly more tired every day, I let it go, and did something productive during those sleepless hours. I was getting good at it, too, flying was almost as easy as walking now, but I still held back on trying risky tricks.

I was confident I could carry someone with me, but only if they were relatively still.

“Please get me down” Hop finally begged again, having calmed down enough to speak. I hummed a bit, giving the illusion that I was considering the request. “Vic, just get me down, I can’t do this”

“Well, I have an alternative I’d prefer” I replied, tossing the idea into the air. “But you’ll have to trust that I won’t drop you”

“Trust that you-? Oh, _fuck_ no, forget it!” Hop snapped, catching on to the implication quickly.He extricated himself from me, and scooted over to the trunk, grabbing onto it and glaring at me like I suggested we kill my mother. “I am _not_ flying, forget that shit!”

“Oh, come on! I won’t drop you, I’m not _that_ big of a prick” I assured, pocketing the phone and scooting closer. “I’ve been practicing a lot, I know I can carry you just fine. You won’t be in danger, I promise”

“ _No_ ” Hop hissed, keeping his glare as he tightened his grip on the tree. “I trust you _fine_ , but I don’t trust heights. _Period”_

“Well, you can either go flying with me for a little while, or stay stuck in this tree, alone, for the next couple of hours” I replied, shoving off the branch to fly closer to my distressed friend. He hid his face. “I’m going out flying either way, so you can either wait for my parents to get home, or come with. Your choice”

Hop didn’t respond for a bit, shaking a little as he looked down at the ground. I waited patiently for his answer, flipping upside down in midair to alleviate a bit of boredom with a perspective shift.

“Do it for me?” I finally asked, giving him my best puppy-dog look, hoping it was at least a little bit effective, even with my ghastly appearance. He finally looked up at me, and I smiled melancholically, flipping upright again. “It would make me feel a bit better about all this if I could share the joy of flying with someone special to me. So, will you please go flying with me?”

Hop stared at me, eyes sparkling and an expression I couldn’t identify. I saw a soft red spread across his cheeks, and he tentatively extended a hand.

“Okay. I’ll go”

I squealed in excitement as I grabbed Hop’s hand, gathering him up into my arms, bridal style, before he could change his mind.I smiled as he freaked out a bit, wrapping his arms snugly around my neck, tight enough to be sure he wouldn’t fall.

“Okay, are you ready to go?” I asked, making a few adjustments in my grip so he was secure. Hop just made a sound that I took for affirmation, and blasted off into the sky, laughing as he screamed in terror.

We ascended for a few moments, only stopping right after we broke the thick, overcast cloud cover that had been darkening the sky all day. Hop shivered in the passing, but never looked up, even when we finally got into the sunlight above the clouds. The condensed wisps of blanketed cloud had changed from a dark, gloomy grey, to lovely pastel shades of pink and yellow in the sunlight, like a field of rose and gold.

“Come on, Hop, you need to see this! It’s beautiful” I chuckled, jostling him a bit so he’d open his eyes. He squeaked, but stopped his protests when he saw where we were. He didn’t speak as we flew through wisps of sunkissed clouds, just over the goldish-pink water-based fields of cotton.

“This is beautiful” He whispered, eyes sparkling in awe. I chuckled, flipping over to avoid an arch of moving cloud, which hit Hop full in the face as we passed under it. “Ack! It doesn’t feel pretty!”

“I’ve smacked into worse” I giggled, ignoring his glare as we dove below the clouds again, right over the big, bustling city section of Galar. I made us both invisible as we drew close enough to be seen, circling around the top if Rose Industries Tower, which was fully encased by a thick glass dome. I pointed to a rather nondescript pane of glass, and continued “Like that. I wasn’t looking close enough one night, and pulled a bird move”

“Wait, really!? Was Rose or Oleana up there when it happened?” He choked out through laughter, tightening his grip around my neck. I grimaced from the memory of who I actually freaked out.“Or did you startle some poor window cleaner?”

“Neither. It was two female employees fucking on that couch over there” I muttered, pointing to the red sofa in question. Hop curled in a bit with his hysterical laughter, as I continued. “Both naked. They jumped up and screamed at me like _I_ was the gross one while I made sure my nose wasn’t broken, I wasn’t even _looking_ at them until the shouting started”

“Christ! You just can’t escape the accidental walk-ins, can you!?” Hop howled, his laughing fit nowhere near completion. “You could file for a rewards card!”

“Hardy har-har” I deadpanned, flying away from the tower as Hop tried to control his laughing fit, and failed. “I’m becoming numb to it, but if I _ever_ walk in on Bede nailing my sister, I may burn down the entire town”

Hop entered another fit of hysterical giggling, and I found myself relaxing as I flew without a destination, just listening to my best friend trying to control his adorable laughing.

I found that, for the first time in a while, I was happy. Really, truly happy. I carefully pulled his body closer, a smile spreading across my face as I felt Hop’s strong heartbeat and warmth, assuring me he was still very alive as he laughed into the side of my neck. The hot breaths made me shiver a bit, but I kept a firm grip, flying aimlessly through the sky.

Eventually, the laughing stopped, but Hop didn’t try to put distance between us. Instead, he relaxed his head against my front, snuggling closer as we flew through he air. The action felt strangely intimate, but for a strange reason, I felt okay with it.

_This is actually really nice_ I thought to myself, turning to stay within the Galar city limits. Usually, physical contact, even from my own family, made me _super_ uncomfortable, but with Hop…

It was just different. I liked it, sought it out with him, even. He was warm and familiar to me, a constant light in my life. Nobody really gave me the same comfort through touch, not even my _mother._ Hop was just something special, I supposed.

_God, I love you_

I flinched as a warmth came to my face at those words. Hop sounded so _sincere_ in that moment. It had scared me. I heard my fathers voice reminding me that I didn’t deserve such love. I was worthless, and simply _nothing_ to the world.

But in moments like these since the accident, I wondered if he was right. Did something like me deserve to be happy? Could someone truly love me as I was?

I didn’t know.

I flinched as Hop broght me back into reality, brushing a hand over my cheek, which was suspiciously wet. I looked down at him.

“You were crying. Are you okay?” He asked, meeting my eyes with a concerned expression. I shook my head, carefully drying my face with the hood of my jacket, brushing his concern off.

“I’m okay. Just thinking about things” I assured, turning to fly back toward my own house. “I think we’ve flown enough today, yeah?”

“…Sure. We can do this again though, right?”

“Of course” I replied, smiling a bit. I was glad he liked flying with me, it was really nice. “I just got caught up in my own thoughts again. You know how it is”

“You were thinking about your sperm doner again, weren’t you?”

“…Not initially”

“Want me to stay over again tonight?”

“…Yeah”

………………..

Expensive leather clicked across a tile floor, the owner staring up at what his camera system had caught.

Ghosts were finally emerging into Galar, proving his hunch right. Aria had opened the portal. _Correctly._ Subject Six had shaken off his experimental Frenzy bacteria soon after escaping the Zone, and according to what his system picked up, was now screwing around with the human population.

_Teenagers._

No matter. The Kaishark would probably be caught by the Hearths before too much chaos could be sewn, what the man was more intrigued by was the new specter that had been testing themselves recently. He was new, and painfully familiar.

“Well well, I may have some adversity after all” He muttered, pulling up the newest recording. The young ghost was carrying around a human. _Intimately_. “A strange little phantom you are”

_I may need to study this one further. But for now…_

“Citron, initiate phase one” he ordered, turning toward a glowing cybernetic figure in the corner. It saluted, and turned towards a hexagonal door in the basement wall. The figure returned to the screens, smirking. “You’re going to regret taking my wife from me, Hearth”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now the underlying plot begins. If you can figure out who "Citron" is supposed to replace, you get a cookie!   
> I apologize for the wait, next week SHOULD continue on the normal schedule (Friday updates), but we'll have to see  
> Also, yes, while Hop and Vic were being cute, Aqua was fucking with people. Harmlessly, but it can get annoying when your hat keeps "Mysteriously" falling off, and things of similar caliber.


	12. Vs Klara, Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Klara is a bitch, Hop is crowned DDR king, and Victor gets poison spit on him

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Extremely Homophobic Language Warning. Seriously, fuck Klara. She died in the late 1990's, if that explains anything about her disgusting use of the non-four-letter "F" word. If you are easily offended by this type of language, please do not read anything with Klara in it. I will post a Klara Warning in front of every chapter with her in it from now on.   
> You have been advised. Now, lets go!

“What the _fuck_ has been going on this week!?” I growled, slamming my head into the table of the local arcades snack area. Aqua flinched next to me, protecting his nachos with a possessive hiss. I glared at him from the table. “Oh, fuck off with you, I’d have to buy you another round anyway”

“True” he mused, relaxing his hold and tossing another cheese covered chip into his mouth, devouring it with a quick flourish. “Whats so wrong with this week?”

“I keep being attacked by those blobby squid ghosts, asshole! You were there!” I snapped at him, sitting back up so we were on more even grounds. Aqua jutted shrugged nonchalantly. “Oh, fuck you, I’m the one who has to drag them back to the portal _every goddamn time_. I’m half expecting one to fly in here to harass me again, just to ruin this outing too because I have to throw them back in the Zone”

“There really should be an easier way to transport those nasty things” he mused in half hearted agreement, tilting his head in thought. “Aren’t your parents working on that? I heard something about a vanity mirror last time I visited”

“Yeah, but it’s not _done_ ” I grumbled, remembering the tech in question. “Imagine, something as compact as a vanity mirror to cary ghosts around in. I’d kill for a working model at this point. I’d just lock up those ghosts and put them back in the Zone at my leisure”

“It surely would make them think twice before attacking again” Aqua agreed, offering me his basket. I blinked up at him, knowing his possessiveness over food. “What? Just take some, I know you haven’t eaten today”

“I didn’t know you were capable of sharing” I mused, before taking a small chunk of cheesy chips and putting them on a napkin as Aqua squawked in indignation. “No offense, of course. You’re just rather possessive of food, so the offer was a pleasant surprise”

“I’m a foodie, not an asshole” He scoffed, still sounding a little offended. “I’m not just gonna sit by and let one of my only friends starve himself”

“Thank you, Aqua” I proclaimed, shutting down any more offended comments. He stared at me like I’d grown a second head. I smirked at him. “I’m mentally damaged, not an asshole”

“Waked right into that one, didn’t I?”

“Yes, yes you did” I chuckled, and our conversation lagged off a bit as we both enjoyed some cheesy chips and good company.

“He is rather good at that game, isn’t he?” Aqua finally asked, breaking the comfortable silence. I raised an eyebrow as he pointed over to the Dance Dance Revolution machine, where a crowd had gathered.

I smiled, watching my childhood friend as he garnered the attention of the entire arcade with his DDR skills. He’d always been really good at that game, but he claimed he wouldn’t be the best until he had the high score, which had been set by a mysterious “KLA” in the games release year, and had never been beaten since.

Of course, neither had Hop by any other living person, but that never deterred his aim to overtake the high score.

“Yup. Hop’s a God when it comes to Dance Dance Revolution. I’m not surprised by the crowd” I chuckled, watching a few bystanders give up their games and join the group of cheering people. “Looks like he’s coming close to the high score again, if the crowd is any indication”

“Why aren’t we cheering him on, then?” Aqua asked, tilting his head. I shrugged, gesturing to the group of people.

“Be my guest. I’m not stopping you”

He needed no second bidding. Aqua abandoned his empty tin to join the crowd in cheering, leaving me to clean up the table. I snorted, amused by Aqua’s enthusiasm, as I cleaned the table by myself, keeping an eye on the DDR machine during the whole process.

Hop was getting really close to that high score.

I had made the table immaculate trying to avoid joining the crowd, but my need to support Hop in his hour of triumph eventually got the best of me, social anxiety be damned. I skirted the edge of the crowd, looking for an opening, as the score on screen drew ever closer to the top spot, overtaking Hop’s previous second place ranking. 

Thankfully, Aqua noticed my struggles with the crowd, and he came to collect me, shoving through the throng of gathered teenagers with ease.

“Alright, fuck off with you lot, the the players best friends are coming through!” Aqua snapped, grabbing my arm before shoving back through the crowd, silencing any protest with a glare and that very argument. Once we were at the front, Aqua used his body to shield me from any pushy people trying to crowd the machine, giving me plenty of room to breathe. Hop stumbled in a movement once he noticed the commotion, but Aqua got him back on track with a final screech of “Oi, Hop, your boyfriends just traversed the sea of hormonal assholes to see your moment of victory, don’t fuck up now!”

Hop seemed surprised by the sudden proclamation, looking over at me for a split second while keeping with the rhythm. I smiled a bit, giving him a thumbs up from behind Aqua’s protective shoving.

That seemed to do the trick. A wide smile spread across his face, and he returned to the game with a focus I had never experienced. I reddened as I watched his movements, unsure of the feeling welling up in me at the sight of pure confidence that was Hop.

I didn’t even notice the number on screen until the song came to an end.

**NEW HIGH SCORE!!!**

All went silent for a moment after the machine screamed that, the whole building seeming to stop for a second. The best score since the game’s setup in nineteen ninety-nine had just been defeated, and even the employees seemed to be in shock at the news. “KLA” had been overthrown.

Hop took advantage of the silence to input his name into the number one spot, and the machine flashed in recognition, crowning the name for all eternity in the code.

The entire arcade erupted into chaos after that.

…………..

The next day, the school was abuzz with the news. The arcade was very popular with the student body of Galar High, so the news that somebody had finally beaten the “Eternal” high score of “KLA” on DDR was a hot topic. Hop was preening the whole time, enjoying the short fame that came with taking down a school legend. I would’ve chastised him for being a smug bastard, but he really wasn’t. He was just really proud of his accomplishment, and I knew he’d be on to other things soon enough, probably before the school was over the topic.

It certainly didn’t stop him from taking his shift to sneak out to get Subway from next door for lunch while me an Aqua waited in the abandoned Guidance Councilors office for our lunch.

That was taking a while, though.

“He’s taking forever!” Aqua snarled as he smacked a filing cabinet with his tail, making a pretty sizable dent. I rolled my eyes, already used to the Kaishark’s theatrics. “Seriously, you beat one high score in this fucking town, and you’re suddenly a celebrity”

“He can’t help people harassing him. We don’t want anyone finding out about this place, he’s probably having a hard time getting people to leave him alone” I reasoned, kicking a bit in my seat, annoyed with how tall the chairs were in here. “Besides, you’re dead, theres no rush for you”

“Being dead doesn’t mean I don’t want to try Subway pizza. I didn’t even know they _had_ that!” Aqua huffed, pulling out the cabinet he dented and trying to straighten the metal out.“Fucking high schoolers, always obsessing over the dumbest things”

I was about to make a snide comment about how old he was when he died, but a _very_ familiar scream cut off any remarks. Our eyes met for a split second, before we busted out of the abandoned office, just in time to see Hop skid to a stop on the ground in front of us, clutching his Katana.

“What the _fuck-_ “ I started, before screeching erupted at the other end of the hall, and a girl who looked to be in her senior year started storming towards us.

She was of average height, with a strange ensemble of green and purple in the old nineties fashion, leg warmers and high tops included. She had purple eyes, pink hair, and a giant white bow with ribbons falling past her shoulders.

Also, she looked _pissed_.

“ _You_! How _dare_ you touch my record!” She screeched, displaying a pair of fangs I hadn’t noticed before. Aqua got into a defensive stance, hissing and lashing his tail, strips lighting up in a warning. “Piss off, you nasty whore, my business is with that fucking _faggot_ who dared smudge my record!”

“ _Woah,_ back the fuck up!” I snarled, as Hop got to his feet, grabbing on to his arm with a wince. “Who the _fuck_ do you think you are, slinging that ugly word around!?”

The girl stopped a few feet form us with a scoff, a nasty look marring her features.

“What I say and do is none of your business, human. Now fuck off, or I’ll snap your skinny little neck” she hissed, a forked tongue sliding out for a split second. I stood firm, which seemed to confuse the girl, who I was already sure was one of the undead. “Poison isn’t pretty in action, boy. Either you can run, or I’ll liquify your innards”

“Fat chance, bitch” I snapped back, transforming as Aqua lunged forward, digging his many fangs into the other ghosts side. The girl screeched in outrage as I grabbed a locker off the wall and charged forward, slamming the metal into her head as Aqua let go, knocking her onto the ground. Aqua went into action as I drew the locker back, pinning her to the floor with claws at her throat. “Good luck liquifying the organs of your fellow undead, yeah?”

“You fucking-!” She started screeching, before Aqua put his other hand over her mouth, shutting her up. Hop limped a bit forward, puling his bag off to hand it over to me.

“She may have smashed our stuff a bit with that throw, but it should still be good” He chuckled, as I checked the contents. Our sandwiches were a little smashed, but still edible. Aqua’s pizza seemed okay, too, but there was no way it wasn’t a mess in the cardboard. “Also, what the fuck, girl? I didn’t do shit to you!”

The ghost didn’t reply, just glared at Hop with such malice I felt myself shiver. Something clicked into place as I remembered what she shouted at us, and a looked her in the eye.

“Wait, did you seriously try to waste my best friend over a goddamn DDR score?” I asked, shoving Hops bag back into his hands. She didn’t speak, even when Aqua removed his hand. “Seriously, you better say something, because if you don’t, I swear to God I will bash in your fucking skull”

I lifted the locker back up for emphasis, and she simply scoffed.

“Nobody touches my records. Ever. But yesterday, I, the great Klara, had her DDR score overwritten by a _faggot_ , of all fucking things” She hissed finally, fury radiating off her like a dark cloud. “My memory was besmirched by a goddamn homosexual, I won’t stand for it!”

“So your logic was to kill the guy? _Really?_ ” Aqua asked as I tried to contain my rage, the bottom of the locker collapsing into nothing between my hands. “You don’t look like you can do much more damage, from where I’m sitting. So you can either come quietly back to the Zone, or I can let my friend make good on his threat”

“I’ll go with the third option, _fuck that_ ” she hissed, before she bit into Aqua’s arm, eliciting an unholy scream from the resident Kaishark. He flew back with more screeching, and Klara jumped up with a flourish, spitting something into my face. I dropped the locker when my skin erupted into what felt like flames, hands jumping to my face to try and dull the agony that had luckily missed my eyes.

Unfortunately, this move left Hop completely open to attack, and I could only watch as she shot forward to tackle him through the floor, both of them sinking out of sight.

“Hop!” I screeched, trying to follow, but Aqua crashed into me at that moment,and the world vanished into darkness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lmao, ADHD sucks. Hopefully, I'll have another chapter up soon. I apologize for the lack of updates, I have had writers block and ADHD is not optimal when writing a book.   
> You all should thank CertainVICTORy for deciding to stop on by, he inspired me to write this in the first place with his own stories, and I was so pleased by his visit that I got right back to work. Comments and Kudos are the best kind of motivation!  
> Also, I have no beta reader. I totally forgot to mention that ever, in case anyone was confused by strange grammatical mistakes. I plan on going back and fixing everything eventually, but for now we are moving forward!


	13. Vs. Klara, Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Victor FUCKS SOME SHIT UP  
> Hop thinks he should be a superhero  
> Aqua thinks Hop is nuts

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Klara Warning

You know, I’m not a naturally violent person. Sure, there’s been plenty of instances with Bede, but I learned long ago that the only language he seems to listen to when it comes to me and Vic is violence. I don’t enjoy the thought of butchering those who are antagonistic towards me alone. I honestly thought I would never find a person who could legitimately make me angry without going after Victor first.

Then Klara decided to drop in, take me hostage because of a goddamn DDR score, and call me a multitude of homophobic slurs on top of that, and I was contemplating ripping her head off just to _shut her up_.

“Bitch, if I could move, I’d take your head off right now and mount it on a pike, shut the _fuck_ up about your goddamn DDR score, I didn’t beat it because I gave a shit about you!” I snapped from my purple prison against the basement wall, a thick purple substance hardened around my body that she spat at me when I failed to stab her.

Klara looked slightly startled by my outburst, but quickly resumed a more smug demeanor. She smoothed out her pretty little bow, and crept up to me, putting her undead cleavage uncomfortably close to my eye level. I chose to keep eye contact, because _ew_. Sexual harassment from either gender is just wrong, yet I was being forced to put up with it for the last hour.

“It really is pathetic that you can’t appreciate a woman’s assets. You’re barely a man as it is” She hissed, her forked snake tongue sliding between her lips at the end. I just glared back, sick of the behavior.

“What I really don’t _appreciate_ is having your tiny tits being shoved in my face repeatedly in the last hour. Now get out of my personal space before I hack a loogie into your upper crevice” I hissed back, readying my ammunition in the back of my throat.

Klara quickly stepped back, and I spat where she was standing, showing I was serious about the threat.

“Ugh, you’re so fucking disgusting, Goddamn” she shuddered, dusting off her jacket.

“Bitch, you _spit acid_ into my best friends face, bit the other one, and have been sexually harassing me for the past hour while calling me homosexual slurs after trapping me in a substance you _barfed_ onto me. If anyones gross here, its your nasty ass” I snapped back, wiggling in the gross purple substance with a flourish in another escape attempt for emphasis. “I swear, if I had access to my katana, I would’ve stabbed you already for putting me through this bullshit for beating _one fucking Dance Dance Revolution high score_! Do you realize how insane this shit is!?”

“It would only be insane if I didn’t have my memory tarnished, faggot” She snapped back, flipping me off as she flew back over, grabbing me by the neck. “And if you don’t shut your fucking whore mouth, I’ll-“

She didn’t get to finish that sentence. Aqua barreled into her at full speed, knocking her to side before he pulled out the old phone we hooked him up with.

“I’ve found her, she’s in the wast side of your schools basement” He spoke loudly into the receiver as Klara picked herself up, looking pissed.

“Well, don’t just keep talking to me, fuck her up! I’ll join you in a minute” Victor’s voice shouted through the speaker, before Klara shot some kind of acid out of her hand that knocked the phone out of Aqua’s talons and disintegratedit. He looked startled by the action, staring at the melted device, bioluminescent stripes lighting up brighter as he turned back around, fury etched into his scaly features.

“That was a _gift_ , you whore!” He shrieked, blasting forward to tackle the eighties clad bitch before she could fully regain her bearings. He kept screaming as they scuffled around on the floor, Klara unable to get the upper hand as Aquarius’ glowing scales grew brighter, a bright light forming behind his teeth, shining through the cracks.

She barely managed to escape his grip before he released a powerful blast from his jaws, forming a rather large scorched crater where she had been milliseconds before. He snarled up at Klara, and she looked pissed off that she barely escaped death.

“An ectoblast!? You could’ve ended me!” She shrieked, looking terribly offended by the very thought. “You know the codes, you can’t just-!

“I can and will, whore! You trespassed on the haunt of two ghosts, stole one specters property, then attempted to destroy it. That was way out of line, even this far outside the Zone!” He snarled back, before tackling her out of the air and behind some crates. I could still hear the fighting, but my mind was already elsewhere.

I needed to ask about those “Codes”. Were they a form of law among the undead? Was there a penalty for breaking those codes? Just the thought of learning more about ghost culture was enough to take me out of the situation to explore the theories in my own head, which was much nicer than all the harassment I’d been subjected to in the last hour.

Paranormal culture always got me so excited, it was my greatest weakness, aside from Vic. The thoughts of completely unique civilizations that formed among us without much record was so fascinating, enough so that I lost track of the fight for a bit.

I was snapped out of it when Aqua suddenly flew up into the air lit up like a Christmas tree to avoid being bitten by a giant snake that I snapped out of my blissful musings.

What. The. Fuck.

Aqua didn’t seem nearly as shocked at myself, just released another blast from his mouth that missed by a hair. The snake screeched obscenities in a familiar voice, and that clued me in that Klara was the enormous serpent that was now trying to eat Aqua.

“Fuck you too, bitch! When I’m done with you, there won’t be enough left to make a purse!” Aqua shouted back, before releasing another blast and flying over to me when it made a direct hit. Klara screeched in agony as Aqua ripped open my cocoon of nastiness, pulling my katana out of his satchel to return to me. “Go hide somewhere and try to escape. I’ll handle the snake bitch”

“I can help th-“

“No arguments, _GO_!” Aqua ordered, shoving me aside right before Klara came barreling down, smashing him into the wall with a sickening _crack._ I felt myself go still as Klara removed her head from the crater, and Aqua slumped down, completely unconscious with several broken limbs. His luminescent stripes had dulled to a point I couldn’t tell if they were even still glowing, and his tail was bent at an unnatural angle.

“Well, that takes care of that issue” Klara giggled as she returned to a more human form, dusting her hands off as she turned to me. “Now, I think I’ve had enough fun for one outing, so I’m gonna go ahead and end this little game early, okay?”

I remained still, unable to shake off my horror at the sight of Aqua’s mangled body as I watched her change her hand into a long, sharp purple spike with a maniacal grin. She leapt forward and I closed my eyes, body instinctively preparing to feel the sharp blow of my death.

It never came.

I cracked open an eye, and then both blew open wide with confusion. Klara had been stopped mid-lunge, looking pissed with her position as a bright red aura eld her in place.

I recognized the shade.

“Bad move” Victor’s voice echoed through the concrete underground, cold and empty. I looked over to the source of the noise to find Vic standing completely still with his hand outstretched, an unreadable expression plastered on, his red eyes blown wide with a slight dip of the eyebrow.

I watched at he stiffly snapped his hand back down, slamming Klara into the concrete with such force it cracked. She hissed in agony, but Victor did not move as she pushed herself back up, and I ran to check on Aqua.

The Kaishark was still animated, thank God, just horribly injured, but recovering quickly. He was already conscious enough to grumble a bit as I dragged him behind a crate, sensing things were about to turn ugly, and neither of us wanted to get caught in the crossfire.

Klara recovered at this moment, and started screeching obscenities, but trailed off when Victor didn’t react. He just stood there, staring at her with a laser focus, waiting for her.

“Come on then” He hissed, emotionless and unmoving. Klara snarled, but seemed even more pissed off by his next comment, spoken with the same emotionless monotone. “Hurting my friends was a bad idea, you cock-sucking whore”

She screeched and lunged forwards, her hand once again formed into that purple spike. Vic blocked her faster than my eyes could track, a pair of glowing red daggers had formed in his hands, and he only used one to stop her in her tracks, unflinching as he took the force of the blow.

Klara only had time to gasp before the other dagger was used to hook into her spike of a hand and fling her off to the side, where she slammed ungracefully into the floor on her side, glaring at Vic, who just idly turned to face her, the glow in his eyes being the only indication of his true emotion.

Pure. Unbridled. **RAGE**.

He was angrier than I’d ever seen anyone get, yet he was barely making any moves to fight as Klara attacked him repeatedly, spitting and stabbing yet getting nowhere as he simply blocked and parried her acid and stabbing. The “Fight” went on for five minutes, Klara getting nowhere close to hurting him, and Aqua had even recovered enough to regain consciousness, speechless as he too joined in to spectate, floating as his limbs healed.

“Alright, enough of this! You want a real fight, you’ve got one!” Klara finally screamed, transforming into her enormous snake form, and lunging for Victor, her jaws wide open.

He simply raised a dagger, and she stopped right before she could swallow him, head stuck in midair and the rest of her body just as frozen by Vic’s telekinesis.

“Is that all?” He asked, the coldness of his voice just barely cracked by the heat of his fury that I could tell was boiling inside. Klara didn’t respond, she couldn’t, her mouth was firmly frozen open. He started tilting the dagger up and down, making the giant head nod.

“Holy shit, he’s just toying with her” Aqua croaked out, his voice sounding a bit strained. I gave him a look, and he raised the arm that wasn’t broken to point at the altercation. “He hasn’t moved from that spot the entire time she’s attacked him, I can tell. I could feel his anger evening my state of unconsciousness”

“Why hasn’t he lost it on her yet?” I asked, confused as to why Victor would even bother with letting her keep going if he was really that angry. Aqua dipped his head, and gestured back to where Victor had stopped making Klara nod her head.

“Just watch, this is the reason any ghost who’s been wronged is feared, even the weakest of us” He advised, putting the unbroken arm on my arm to keep me from turning away. “It’s a lesson that is invaluable to learn: Never Touch a Specters Most Precious Possession. This is why”

I watched, awestruck, as Victors expression slowly morphed to match his rage, knuckles white from his grip on his glowing daggers.

“ **My Turn.”**

There was a roar so inhuman, that I couldn’t even contemplate how Victors lungs had managed to produce such a sound. Klara was slammed into the concrete floor with a loud _thud_ , before being jerked back into the air and slammed into another surface, and another, and another, each hit so loud and strong, I was surprised Klara’s skull hadn’t cracked from trauma.

This continued for five straight minutes, Klara somehow having not been squashed by all the blunt force the entire time, before Victor suddenly dropped her, his arm returning to his side. He stared at her unmoving serpentine body, hands shaking from the tight grip he had on his daggers.

“Are you done, or do you still want to keep going?” He hissed, pointing the other dagger at the unmoving form.

All was quiet for a moment, and Vic turned his back.

Klara surged forward when he did, and faster than I could blink, he had smashed her head into the ground with the hilt of his dagger, making a crater even bigger than Aqua’s laser had produced. Klara returned to a more human form, effectively knocked out, and Vic removed a sphere from his pocket.

“You’re lucky I’m not killing you” He hissed, before clicking a button on the half black, half red sphere, and a green light erupted from the inside, consuming Klara’s body and sucking her inside. The sphere snapped shut, and Vic stumbled a bit when the last of the light faded, before passing out on the floor, having exhausted himself.

“That. Was awesome” I breathed in awe, amazed by just how powerful my friend was. Aqua stared at me like I had lost my mind. I simply spoke my thoughts at the expression.“He should be a superhero, that was fucking amazing”

“What the fuck is wrong with you?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ADHD is fun. School less so. Sorry about the late update, took a while to finish Vic's first fight with a major problem.  
> Also, Yes, the knives are a thing he can do, he just doesn't know he can because he was so blinded by rage in that fight


End file.
